{"id":15592,"date":"2012-05-17T09:40:32","date_gmt":"2012-05-17T08:40:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.taxresearch.org.uk\/Blog\/?p=15592"},"modified":"2012-05-17T09:40:32","modified_gmt":"2012-05-17T08:40:32","slug":"the-tax-justice-movement-is-probably-the-most-pro-business-lobby-in-the-world-right-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.taxresearch.org.uk\/Blog\/2012\/05\/17\/the-tax-justice-movement-is-probably-the-most-pro-business-lobby-in-the-world-right-now\/","title":{"rendered":"The tax justice movement is probably the most pro-business lobby in the world right now"},"content":{"rendered":"

The business fight-back against the tax justice lobby is continuing. It's beginning to have a\u00a0decidedly\u00a0co-ordinated feeling to it. As the\u00a0Guardian\u00a0has\u00a0reported\u00a0this\u00a0morning<\/a>,\u00a0Stefano Pessina, the Italian billionaire who co-owns Alliance Boots with private equity firm KKR, warned at a CBI conference yesterday that the prevailing \"anti-business\" mood among the public could deter companies from investing here. As they note:<\/p>\n

The Switzerland based company, which owns Boots the Chemist, has been among those targeted by protest groups such as UK Uncut over its tax affairs. Pessina said the government was \"business friendly\" but said: \"My only regret is the atmosphere in the UK is anti-business and this is not a good thing, because investment means jobs and that's what we need in this country.\"<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Well it's fascinating to note that such a tiny number of us have such an enormous impact, but let's also set the record straight. The tax justice movement is probably the most pro-business lobby there is right now, possibly in the world.<\/p>\n

We argue that business and those who\u00a0invest\u00a0in it should have all the information they need to make decisions. That's called\u00a0country-by-country reporting. Information and transparency are good for\u00a0business. We're doing more than anyone to support the supply of that information.<\/p>\n

We argue that small business should not be disadvantaged by big business. So we say big business should not be able to use tax havens,\u00a0transfer mispricing, copyright, patent and\u00a0royalty\u00a0abuses to\u00a0shift\u00a0profits and more besides which reduce their taxes when\u00a0small\u00a0business\u00a0can\u00a0do no such things. That's unfair\u00a0competition by big business. You can even call it the abuse of monopoly power. We're going out of our way to prevent it.<\/p>\n

And we're arguing tax cheats should not have an\u00a0advantage\u00a0over honest business. So we're arguing for more tax inspectors to catch the\u00a0cheats\u00a0and so create a level playing field for all honest business. No one else is doing that.<\/p>\n

And we're also demanding that all businesses must be required to comply with their requirements to file their accounts on public record, say who they are, tell us who runs them and be\u00a0accountable\u00a0for what they do. That massively reduces the risk of bad debts that are\u00a0crippling\u00a0for\u00a0many businesses, especially in a downturn. No one else is more\u00a0vociferous\u00a0than\u00a0us in demanding this - which would be of enormous\u00a0benefit\u00a0to business.<\/p>\n

And we demand the same worldwide - including in tax havens - so exporting is easier and less risky. Lower risk reduces the cost of business and increases well being. No one else is doing that either.<\/p>\n

We're even demanding more\u00a0efficient\u00a0capital markets - by\u00a0demanding\u00a0that we understand better through\u00a0country-by-country reporting just what risks there are inherent within\u00a0multinational corporations, which is information\u00a0simply\u00a0unavailable at present. No one else is doing that.<\/p>\n

I could go on, but with respect Mr Pessina, your problem with us is not that we're anti-business,\u00a0because\u00a0we're not. We're anti-business abuse; and that, I suspect is what you don't like. Being in favour of a level playing field - which is what we want - is not anti-business. It's\u00a0decidedly\u00a0pro-business. But it sure as heck scares those who make profit from abusing their positions of power in the market, which is real anti-business\u00a0activity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The business fight-back against the tax justice lobby is continuing. It’s beginning to have a\u00a0decidedly\u00a0co-ordinated feeling to it. As the\u00a0Guardian\u00a0has\u00a0reported\u00a0this\u00a0morning,\u00a0Stefano Pessina, the Italian billionaire who
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