The Guardian seems to have noted the theme on this blog suggesting that multinational corporations wish to float free from the constraints of government. So has Google. As the Guardian have noted:
A week or so ago, Google's chief executive, Larry Page, caused ripples when he suggested at a public event that laws older than 50 years or so shouldn't apply to internet companies, and that it might be fun to have an island where Google could dabble in new ideas without all the silly meddling of governments. (That's only a slight paraphrase.) The only way he could have seemed more like a Bond villain would be if he had been stroking a cat while speaking.
Certainly [Eric Schmidt, Google's chair] must tut and sigh when he hears Page talk about ignoring laws and creating fiefdoms but, when he was asked about capitalism, he replied: "Of course, Google is a capitalist country …" Laughter. "Company," he said, uncomfortably. A slip of the tongue? Perhaps the truth is out. Perhaps Larry Page's island isn't so far off after all. One has to wonder — how soon can one move there, and what will the tax rate be?
Freudian indeed.
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Not a bad idea, Richard. Move Page and co to an uninhabited island where they will have to provide their own food, water, sanitation, transport, healthcare, leisure facilities etc. It might teach them what tax is for.
Mr Murphy,
Google is an American company. It was created by (first-generation immigrant) Americans, and it is now managed, owned and funded by Americans.
The United States is the only place where the company should be concerned about making a contribution to tax revenues, and it has: a brief look at the chart of $GOOG should be enough to convince you that Google has generated enormous amounts of (taxable) capital gains tax for its shareholders. It has also helped to secure the long term welfare of Americans, thereby relieving the burden they may become for future generations and the state in general.
I am always amazed at the Europeans’ absence of perspective: if British or other Europeans really want a Google (or Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, etc) to tax, why don’t they help to create their own? Why is it that Europe has barely created any billion dollars company in the last 30 years, while the United States has created several hundreds?
The constant whining about American companies’ tax strategies certainly won’t help solve that problem.
How do you know google is a us company?
Google UK looks like it’s a UK one generating billions of UK revenue to me
Your argument is factually wrong
As is your knowledge of its ownership, I suspect.
Mr Murphy
Google Inc. is headquartered in California. It is listed on the NASDAQ. All senior executive officers are Americans (some naturalized), with the exception of the CFO who is Canadian. All directors are Americans (again, some are naturalized).
More importantly from the point of view of our conversation, the group companies are consolidated into a Californian tax-resident corporation. As such, it is subject to US tax laws that mandate that it minimizes overseas corporation tax payments in order for those to be creditable against domestic corporation tax.
These are the facts. Feel free to engage in a positive discussion.
I have
It is an MNC
Stop denying the bleeding obvious
Why is it that someone, and he is not alone unfortunately, wishes to convince the rest of us that black is white and will create any number of road blocks, diversions and smokescreens in order to so?
The game is up!
We know the wealthy and MNCs are freeloading, because putting in very crudely their whole philosophy is based on the premise that “only little people” pay taxes
“The Senate investigation showed that Apple sheltered at least $74 billion from US income taxes between 2009 and 2012 by using a “complex web” of offshore mailbox companies. One such Irish subsidiary with no employees made $30 billion and didn’t pay a dime to a ** single government anywhere,** not even Ireland”
http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/2013-05-23/revealed-apple%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%9Coffshore%E2%80%9D-cash-isn%E2%80%99t-even-offshore