Are you in favour of a European tax? If so or not, why?

Question

Within the EU, governments retain sole responsibility for levels of taxation on personal incomes and company profits. What a EU taxation policy would do is ensure that tax rules are consistent with the goals of job creation, the EU’s competitiveness, the single market and free movement of capital.

Some argue that member states are best placed to take appropriate economic measures for their country. Others argue that greater economic and fiscal coordination is required between member states.

So are you in favour of a European tax? If so or not, why?

For more information read the Answers team blog: http://uk.blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-qT1KKPQoRKdVT4lowpJCljbFokkuIzI8?p=2713

Answer 1

I agree that member states are best placed to take appropriate economic measures for their country.

Harmonisation of VAT, Income TAX, or Corporation TAX -
Firstly takes away what I believe in principle to be a necessary freedom of each member nation to govern it's own economy as it sees fit.

Secondly, as is demonstrated by the situation in the USA, individual states are given a certain amount of freedom in how they tax individuals and corporations, even though they're far less independant than EU nations are. This is a situation that in the USA has been arrived at through long periods of trial and error in their governance and therefore bears out the theory that individual nations in the EU would also be, in practical terms, better placed to decide such matters for themselves - escpecially since they're even more independantly governed and varied in culture, economy, direction, etc.

Thirdly, a harmonisation across the EU, would in itself be a wasteful and time consuming expense. Particularly when considering the added complexity of making it work across the different currencies valid in the EU (GBP, DKK, SEK, EUR), the difficult and lengthy process to agree to the governance structure (ie. who decides the tax rate & structure, and how).

Fourthly, I do not believe it would be practical or even possible to get EU countries to agree to harmonised rates in an EU that contains nations with such widely differing viewpoints and political & economic approaches. E.g. Denmark has the highest taxation of individuals in the world, so one very extreme socialist approach there, contrasted with the Ireland where employees pay the lowest direct tax in Europe.

However, as is usual in such matters, I believe a robust discussion of this involves consideration of more complex solutions/situations than a simple yes or no we should have harmonised tax or not. For example, something worthy of consideration for EU guidelines, may be tackling unfair competition in corporate taxation. For example the preferential tax treatment that Ireland has applied to certain types of company and geographical area, is in effect disguised state aid. And EU guidelines, harmonised across all member states to mark this out as unfair tax competition, could potentially be useful - though I would be very guarded against anything prescriptive. For example (unrelated analogy to illustrate my reasoning), the UK & EU, in the area of financial markets has found success recently relative to the famous home of finance in New York, largely due to the American SEC creating more prescriptive and prohibitive regulations, while the EU, FSA, etc. have created less prescriptive regimes opening markets to more global business and greater success.
Therefore EU Directives may not necessarily be the best approach to dealing with even the subject of unfair tax competition.

Another area where EU harmonised tax principles could be worth considering is, abolishing tax on cross-border payments of interest and royalties between associated companies, thereby saving them much paper work and overhead and making them generally more cost effective and generally creating a competitive edge and incentive for all companies to do business in the EU. I foresee this in particular as a win-win situation for every EU member nation.

A more contentious possibility - which for now I would say is worthy only of tentative discussion, would be some sort of consistent approach to so called "green taxes" - this could greatly make our attempts to 'save the world' more efficient and possibly cost effective. Although this would be a far more complex discussion that I wouldn't get into here.

So in summary, I'd say a definite "No" to harmonised VAT, Income Tax, or Corporation Tax, or even Capital Gains Tax, or National Insurance, etc. But, further discussion of non-prescriptive tax agreements on unfair tax competition, abolishment of paying tax on cross border royalties and commissions, and some discussion of consistent approaches to green taxes, would certainly be welcome.

Answer 2

The ERM was a disaster, but a pre cursor for any frame work that would integrate EU wide fixed taxation. At the time the tories were blamed for it, whereas the EU played an equal part in the bleak 90's economic recession.

And don't bleat on about a 'single common market'. The UK was conned into voting for it back in the 70's, under Ted Heath. It was only ever the first step in creating a European superstate - to rival the US.

There was clever phrasing in your question, heading misleading. We all know we would not pay the same rates of tax, that would be impossible - some EU countries are richer than others; and others are extremely poor. So in the end the richest countries would have to shoulder the burden. Lets all share another recession!

Typical of the EU, waffle and confuse. Attractive gravy train though and a magnet for fraud and corruption.

On the subject, when will the EU produce annual financial deficit audits? Have they weeded out the widespread fraud and corruption? When will they stop giving jobs to failed and sacked politicians who have been mired in national scandal; Mandelson for example? Don't trust them much with handling our national finances!

We're not even part of the continent anyway!

I say NO to EU universal taxation.

But YES to continued membership IF it really was just an open common market.

(Cafcnil had the best point - re. comparisons, North Korea & EEC)..

And NO to the ugly Euro.. and that rag of a flag..

People are okay, politicians and sycophants are the blight of it all..

Answer 3

Personally, I'm indifferent. But in the UK anything prefixed by the words Europe, Euro or EU don't tend to go down very well (we've only just started to like the Channel tunnel and the Eurostar). Central taxation tends to suggest a central government, shifting the EU away from it's current quasi-intranational/intergovernmental roll. So really this questions comes down to whether or not you want a single European state, again, a little less than popular here in the UK and I'm guessing quite a few other European countries.

Answer 4

TAX, or Corporation TAX -
Firstly takes away what I believe in principle to be a necessary freedom of each member nation to govern it's own economy as it sees fit.

Secondly, as is demonstrated by the situation in the USA, individual states are given a certain amount of freedom in how they tax individuals and corporations, even though they're far less independant than EU nations are. This is a situation that in the USA has been arrived at through long periods of trial and error in their governance and therefore bears out the theory that individual nations in the EU would also be, in practical terms, better placed to decide such matters for themselves - escpecially since they're even more independantly governed and varied in culture, economy, direction, etc.

Answer 5

Secondly, as is demonstrated by the situation in the USA, individual states are given a certain amount of freedom in how they tax individuals and corporations, even though they're far less independant than EU nations are. This is a situation that in the USA has been arrived at through long periods of trial and error in their governance and therefore bears out the theory that individual nations in the EU would also be, in practical terms, better placed to decide such matters for themselves - escpecially since they're even more independantly governed and varied in culture, economy, direction, etc.

Answer 6

contrasted with the Ireland where employees pay the lowest direct tax in Europe.

However, as is usual in such matters, I believe a robust discussion of this involves consideration of more complex solutions/situations than a simple yes or no we should have harmonised tax or not. For example, something worthy of consideration for EU guidelines, may be tackling unfair competition in corporate taxation. For example the preferential tax treatment that Ireland has applied to certain types of company and geographical area, is in effect disguised state aid. And EU guidelines, harmonised across all member states to mark this out as unfair tax competition, could potentially be useful - though I would be very guarded against anything prescriptive. For example (unrelated analogy to illustrate my reasoning), the UK & EU, in the area of financial markets has found success recently relative to the famous home of finance in New York, largely due to the American SEC creating more prescriptive and prohibitive regulations, while the EU, FSA, etc. have created less prescriptive regimes opening markets to more global business and greater success.
Therefore EU Directives may not necessarily be the best approach to dealing with even the subject of unfair tax competition.

Answer 7

Which kind of Tax is being debated? Vat has been harmonised to some degree for a long time.

" People always com plan about tax, "even when they also ask governments to spent more money.

I would be prepared to pay tax to a Government, even if it were not one of my choice, providing I had a vote. that is democracy.

I would feel no moral ob legation in paying tax to an abstract bureaucracy such as the EU.

Answer 8

I'm not opposed to a European tax on principal.However Until Europe cleans house in other area's I'm strongly against giving that level of government more power including direct taxation.
Europe has a Democratic deficit.The European Parliament is the only directly elected body yet it has too little power compared to the commission.
I also think Europe is a big bureaucracy and the many scandals in the past proof there is room for much improvement here.
I believe in European integration but as things are now the EU seems to be a tool for big business and corporations to move slowly but steadily away from the European tradition of a balance between a free market and social justice towards jungle capitalism where it's everyone for himself and no freedom is more important than the free market like they have in the United States of America.I and many others don't want that in Europe.
The European project seems to be only about the economy.There is no European minimum wage,there should be.There is no coherent foreign policy,when it really counts like with the Iraq war European voices are shattered and diverse.
Let's face it there is no European foreign policy and there is no European social policy.Though in economy,integrated market,single currency and other goodies for buisness are achieved the political and certainly the social integration is lacking behind.

As long as the EU is a project of politicians who focus on the Economy while ignoring the real concerns of the European citizens I can't support a European tax

Answer 9

The EU Treaties give the EU ***no powers*** to impose or collect taxes. Only with the agreement of ***all*** Member States can a new tax of any description be brought in by the EU. For those who don't believe me, see the article in my sources - even tiny Luxembourg is able to stop EU tax proposals. Unanimous means unanimous. I'd love to know why somebody gave me "thumbs down" - whether you like what I say or not, it's the truth. I'll post a video of myself on utube eating my shoes, if somebody can disprove anything I've said.

Answer 10

I wouldn't mainly because Monetary control, for those using the Euro is now under the control of the ECB. Tax must be controlled solely by the member states.

Ireland for example has benefited by membership of th EU and Euro. But as we can see in the Euro, the economic situation in countries such as Ireland are not factored in when deciding interest rate rises, fair enough we are a small country in comparison to France and Germany. But tax rates should be decided by the individual countries, it is one of the main reasons for Ireland's economic success.

Having a centralised tax system, similar to the monetary controls, will only benefit the larger countries and ruin the smaller ones.

Sovereignty is another issue. It is one of the most important part of government's purpose to regulate tax in accordance to the will of the people. Also tax is linked directly to a government's plan to stimulate growth and employment in accordance to they're own economic, social, technological and environmental situations.

Answer 11

I barely trust my own government with my taxes, let alone the EU. I would be in favour of it if it was in exchange for a rate of tax I already pay, provided it was lower. An Extra Tax for what?!! Not a chance.