These boys do worry me you know.
Reform tax policy to close tax havens, revise tax treaties and use revenue-raising tariffs more productively.
Eh? They’re approving of this NGO talking point document for presentation to a UN conference.
Reform tax policy to close tax havens, revise tax treaties and use revenue-raising tariffs more productively.
If they were actually trying to help countries develop, they would be wanting to reduce or eliminate tariffs, wouldn’t they?
10 responses so far ↓
1 David Gillies // Mar 27, 2008 at 7:51 pm
Well, let’s face it: Richard Murphy is part of the TJN and they think that the UK is a tax haven. Not the sharpest tools in the shed.
2 Peter Risdon // Mar 27, 2008 at 8:19 pm
It’s that dishonest use of the word “justice” that sticks in my craw, like the Lib Dem use of the word “fair” - meaning high.
Maybe an alternative - Tax Justice Coalition? - needs to be set up to enlighten some of the people who google for them
3 Bishop Hill // Mar 27, 2008 at 8:38 pm
It’s pips squeaking they’re interested in. Sod the poor.
4 Kay Tie // Mar 27, 2008 at 9:42 pm
“It’s pips squeaking they’re interested in. Sod the poor.”
But it’s about equality, isn’t it? We must all be equal, even if that’s the equality of the grave.
5 Mister Jones // Mar 27, 2008 at 10:35 pm
All this and veiled threats against the sovereignty of Liechtenstein too. The powers that be must have run out of money (Again).
6 Serf // Mar 28, 2008 at 8:44 am
He backs the idea of rich powerful countries threatening weak ones into doing as they are told.
We used to have a word for that……um…..um …..ah
Imperialism.
7 Letters From A Tory // Mar 28, 2008 at 10:11 am
“more productively” is a superbly vague term that can be interpreted in any way they want.
http://lettersfromatory.wordpress.com
8 So Much For Subtlety // Mar 28, 2008 at 11:37 am
At the risk of incurring the Wrath of Worstall, for developing countries tariffs for revenue raising purposes make some degree of sense. The Developed world relies on Income Taxes, Company Taxes and some form of VAT. A Third World country is unlikely to have any companies worth taxing. A VAT requires a very high level of literacy that no Third World nation is likely to have - how many African gardeners do you think could fill out the forms? An Income Tax requires a very high level of honesty because compliance is, ultimately, voluntary in a collective sense. They just don’t have enough people to check on us all. So none of the are suitable for a Developing Nation.
A tariff on the other hand is easy to collect in one place, it hits no one in the economy who is likely to rise in rebellion, it disproportionately hits the richer segments of society and best of all, you can out source it. Indonesia gets a Swiss company to collect their’s. If your currency floats, I’d be interested in the long term impact on the economy. I’d expect very little.
Tim adds: The Wrath of Worstall indeed. Tariffs do not disproportionately hit the rich: they hit the poor.
9 Johnathan P // Mar 28, 2008 at 11:55 am
Take a look at the organisations that support the TJN. Not a single business or entrepreneur among them.
To be honest, the best defence of tax havens is that they exert general downward pressure on tax by giving those with the means to avoid paying taxes. It is one of the few forces checking the advance of Big Government, which clearly makes R. Murphy and other collectivist looters very cross.
10 So Much For Subtlety // Mar 28, 2008 at 1:18 pm
“Tim adds: The Wrath of Worstall indeed. Tariffs do not disproportionately hit the rich: they hit the poor.”
Hmm, not in Africa I think.
Mind you there’s no reason not to have a really complex tariff system that does hit the rich. How many poor people drive Mercedes Benz cars? Whether you’d want to or not is another matter.
Seriously, if not tariffs, what? Even African governments need to raise revenue. We all know how they do it in practice, but if not this, how?
Which does not change my complete contempt for the TJN and their Orwellian use of the term “justice”.
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