Commenting on the outcome of the G20 finance ministers’ meeting in Fukuoka, Japan, Sven Giegold, spokesperson for Bündnis 90/Die Grünen in the European Parliament, said:
“The progress against tax dumping by digital companies is encouraging. But, there is still a long way to go to reach an agreement. There are significant differences of opinion behind the positions of the G20 states. Not everything that looks technical is truly technical.
The United States has already undertaken a fundamental reform of its corporate tax system, also to avoid international tax dumping. Progress in the G20 must no longer be used as an excuse to delay European action. The EU Commission’s proposals on the digital tax and public tax transparency for large companies are ready for decision. The European Parliament has already adopted the proposals. The German government must no longer block both. Only a Europe capable of acting is strong in global negotiations.
A global compromise on corporate taxation must not create any pressure to lower corporate tax rates to a corridor of about 10-13%. Otherwise, the taxation of top incomes would come under pressure at the same time as progressive income taxation. The possibilities for states to reduce social inequality through tax policy must be improved and not reduced by the global compromise”.
The final draft of the communiqué of the G20 finance ministers can be found here: https://sven-giegold.de/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Final-draft-G20-Fukuoka-Communique.pdf