13 Amendments of Elly SCHLEIN related to 2016/2038(INI)
Amendment 31 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
Ba. whereas developing countries are disproportionately affected by corporate tax avoidance, which is responsible for an estimated $100 billion20a of annual tax revenue losses, depriving them of the essential resources to fund the most basic services and harming EU development cooperation policies; __________________ 20a [1] World Investment Report 2015 - Reforming International Investment Governance, UNCTAD, 2015
Amendment 53 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas convergence of tax policies should also be accompanied by greater controls and more investigations of harmful tax practices; whereas the Commission has started new formal investigations regarding tax treatment of MNEs; whereas a number of investigations by the Commission in matters of state aid were still ongoing at the time of adoption of this report; whereas certain Member States have initiated recovery procedures against some MNEs; whereas certain member states have carried out spill-over analysis of their domestic tax policies to assess the negative impacts on developing countries;
Amendment 144 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital X a (new)
Recital X a (new)
Xa. whereas the BEPS process did not include developing countries as equal negotiating partners and failed to deliver effective solutions to poorest countries' tax problems, including the global network of tax treaties that often impedes developing countries from taxing profits generated in their territory;
Amendment 199 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Welcomes the Commission’s adoption on 12 April 2016 of a proposal for a directive amending Directive 2013/34/EU as regards disclosure by companies, their subsidiaries and branches, of information relating to income tax and to increased transparency in company tax; regrets, however, that the proposed scope, criteria and thresholds are not in line with the previous positions adopted by Parliament; calls, in this regard, to replace the OECD threshold with the EU's own existing definition of 'large undertakings' and for the publication of disaggregated data from all third countries, in order to tackle the setting up of tax avoidance schemes involving and harming developing countries;
Amendment 217 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Regrets that the new OECD Global Standard on Automatic Exchange of Information does not include a transition period for developing countries, and that by making this standard reciprocal, those countries that still have low capacity to set up the necessary infrastructure to collect, manage and share the required information may effectively be excluded;
Amendment 245 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Strongly emphasises that the work of whistleblowers is crucial for revealing scandals of tax evasion and avoidance, and that, therefore, protection for whistleblowers needs to be legally guaranteed and strengthened EU-wide; notes that the European Court of Human Rights and the Council of Europe have undertaken work on this issue; considers that courts and Member States should ensure the protection of legitimate business secrets while in no way hindering, hampering or stifling the capacity of whistleblowers and journalists to document and reveal illegal, wrongful and harmful practices where this is clearly and overwhelmingly in the public interest; regrets that the Commission has no plans for prompt action on the matter;
Amendment 269 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Calls on the Commission to come up as soon as possible with a common Union list of uncooperative jurisdictions (i.e. a ‘blacklist of tax havens’), based on sound and objective criteria, including full implementation of OECD recommendations, BEPS actions and Automatic Exchange of Information standards, and welcomes the Commission’s intention to reach an agreement on such a list within the next six months; calls on the Member States to endorse that agreement by the end of 2016;
Amendment 290 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Calls on the Member States to renegotiate their bilateral tax treaties with third countries in order to introduce anti- abuse clauses and thus prevent ‘treaty shopping’; stresses furthermore that this process would be expedited considerably if the Commission were mandated by Member States to negotiate such tax treaties on behalf of the Union; calls on the Member States to properly ensure a fair treatment of developing countries when negotiating such treaties, taking into account their particular situation and ensuring a fair distribution of taxing rights between source and residence countries; calls, in this regard, to adhere to the UN model tax convention rather than the OECD model, to conduct comprehensive impact assessments ensuring that negative impacts are avoided, to desist from reducing withholding tax rates and to ensure transparency around treaty negotiations;
Amendment 474 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 40 a (new)
Paragraph 40 a (new)
40a. Reiterates its call on the Commission and the Member States to conduct spill-over analysis of national and EU tax policies, in order to assess the impact on developing countries and remove policies and practices which negatively affect them;
Amendment 478 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 41
Paragraph 41
41. Calls on the Commission to include in all trade and partnership agreements good governance clauses, including an effective and comprehensive implementation of BEPS measures and global automatic exchange of information standards;
Amendment 485 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 42
Paragraph 42
42. Calls on the OECD to start work on an ambitious BEPS II, to be based primarily on minimum standards and concrete objectives for implementationReiterates its call for the transformation of the UN taxation committee into a genuine intergovernmental body, to ensure that all countries can participate on an equal footing in the formulation and reform of global tax policies, starting with an ambitious BEPS II;
Amendment 497 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 44
Paragraph 44
44. Calls for the establishment of a Union public register of beneficial ownership, which would form the basis of a global initiative in this regard; stresses the vital role of institutions such as the OECD and the UN in this connection;
Amendment 502 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 45
Paragraph 45
45. Calls for a public global assets register of all assets held by individuals, companies and all entities such as trusts and foundations, to which tax authorities would have full access;