The more we hear about tax havens, the less the G20 will have achieved
James Forsyth 4:19pm
James Kirkup has a very astute post up at Three Line Whip about how to gauge the success of the G20 summit in April. Kirkup writes,
I expect that the G20 is going to be a disappointment for Brown mainly because the Obama administration, where only one slot in the Treasury has been filled, is not in a position to talk specifics on a new international financial architecture. I do, though, suspect that Brown will try and use Obama’s call for more global stimulus to justify more deficit spending and tax cuts. His Chancellor, however, seems to have other ideas.“The more you hear Mr Brown, Mr Obama and the rest talk about tax havens, the more they have failed to agree on more important things. No one likes tax havens. They're the low-hanging fruit of the G20 process - saying rude things about the Swiss and the rest is pretty easy and uncontroversial. But it's also missing the point. This crisis didn't begin in Guernsey or the Caymans, it began in New York and London.Remember that on April 2. If tax havens and offshore finance are anything but a minor part of the "global new deal" struck in London then Gordon Brown has failed.”
Previous
GeoffH
March 14th, 2009 4:49pm Report this commentTax cuts?
Labour chancellors don't do tax cuts even when they've got spare money falling about their ears (not a frequent occurrence, I grant you.
Deficit spending, yes but tax cuts?
Pull the other one.
Tiberius
March 14th, 2009 5:26pm Report this commentThat's the second time today I've read about "low-hanging fruit", having never before come across the expression.
How do these expressions come into being?
The G20 summit will be of no practical help to either the financial crisis, or the Great Leader's standing.
mckenzie
March 14th, 2009 6:02pm Report this commentSpeaking from the point of view of someone who has been skint for the entire 47 years of his skint life, this is all poetry.
Its like shooting rats in a barrel. And it can only get beter.
TomTom
March 14th, 2009 6:11pm Report this commentYes tax havens....doesn't Soros hold his ownership of HMRC offices through the Cayman Islands; and doesn't HSBC Infrastructure hold its ownership of PFI BSF Schools through Jersey companies and presumably the Treasury and Home Office buildings similarly ?
Just what does Brown want to prove ? That he has transferred public assets to private ownership in tax havens ?
Clearly the man is barking mad
George Laird
March 14th, 2009 6:11pm Report this commentDear James
I agree with you, this G20 is a dud, this is all about people getting their picture took with Obama.
It is too early and of little worth.
Brown and his rabble will try to claim some major breakthrough.
Someone might propose a minor change and the rest of the donkeys will auto nod about how wonderful it is.
But thats about it.
The G20 is an 'I am here' event.
For Brown, this is about trying to sell the myth he is a World Statesman.
The truth is he looks like a guy who has slept in the park in his suit and has lost his paper cup to collect change.
Yours sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University
Brian
March 14th, 2009 9:58pm Report this commentI hope the G20 will achieve something, but I certainly agree - tax havens are a total red herring. Attacking them is utter populism and totally insignificant.
Emil
March 14th, 2009 10:56pm Report this commentmckenzie - here's the news.
none of this will make you any less skint.
Sorry to rain on your parade.
Hayward Maberley
March 15th, 2009 5:49am Report this commentBrian et al.,
So US$100 billion a year is totally or otherwise insignificant?
To whom is US$100 billion insignificant?
Admittedly not significant enough to bail out AIG, but most people I know would consider it as significant.
As does Carl Levin, following on from the USB rollover, in an extract from an article from WSJ @ http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123613750507826203.html?mod=WSJ_TimesEMEA
...Sen. Carl Levin, (D., Mich.), chairman of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, which has delved into alleged tax haven abuse for years, said he hopes a bill he is sponsoring, and similar legislation in the House, will stop banks from doing what UBS has admitted...
...Mr. Levin said the administration's support for the bill "sends a strong signal to tax havens that this Administration is not going to tolerate the kind of offshore tax abuses that have been draining $100 billion a year from the U.S. Treasury and that, as a result, offload the tax burden onto the backs of honest taxpayers."
Mitch
March 15th, 2009 8:20am Report this commentSend the useless buggers a message.Do not buy a paper that mentions it and turn over the TV when its shown.
We don't want their grinning faces we want results.
Alf Tupper
March 15th, 2009 1:44pm Report this commentmckenzie - here's some more news.
none of this will make you and me any less skint.
But how gratifying to see the gombeen men and their leaching, exposed for what they are.
It's stopped raining now.
Nigel Bradshaw
March 15th, 2009 3:28pm Report this commentClosing down so called UK tax havens would create a large number of small Scottish-style dependent territories completely reliant on the English taxpayer for survival. Brilliant Brown!
Faceless Bureaucrat
March 15th, 2009 5:41pm Report this comment@ Tiberius
I think the term 'low hanging fruit' was first coined by that champion of the British taxpayer, Sir Peter Gershon (he of 'The Gershon Review', which gamely attempted to slice 85,000 civil servants from the government payroll). It gives an indication of what he saw their worth as - come back Sir Peter, Lord knows we need you now!...
Back to top