Tax evasion and fraud threaten the European project

May 8, 2013 by Elias Lacon 23 Comments

European Parliament Special committee on organised crime, corruption and money laundering with commissioner Algirdas Šemeta in charge of Taxation and Customs Union, Audit and Anti-fraud in the forefront, (European Parliament Audiovisual Services, 7/5/2013).

Tax evasion and avoidance has been a perennial issue from the moment taxation was invented. Presently the European Commission estimates that in the EU of 27 member states, tax avoidance and fraud runs up to €1 trillion yearly, more than enough to foot the bill of government deficits that plague the EU economy and have led to the present crisis of sovereign over indebtedness. The government account consolidation effort undertaken in Greece, Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Italy and elsewhere in Eurozone, enforced through the application of draconian austerity programmes, threatens even to undermine the very concept of the European project alienating all those citizens who duly pay their taxes from the European ideal. On this issue, Algirdas Šemeta, EU Commissioner responsible for Taxation and Customs Union, Statistics, Audit and Anti-fraud, speaking to the European Parliament Committee Economic Committee on Taxation/ Brussels said, that “Member States’ consolidation efforts, which need to be sustained, can only be accepted by our businesses and citizens if they are seen to be fair and equally shared. For that reason, it was essential to put more emphasis on tapping into the huge pot of uncollected taxes which escape the public purse through fraud or evasion”. Tax evaders push for Grexit Greece is the most striking example of that. All reports about the country’s economic woos have repeatedly stated the problem of the one-sided distribution of the huge load to straighten up the government’s balance sheet. For three years now the Greek austerity programmes are financed with severely increased taxation on those who traditionally duly pay their taxes, that is wage earners and pensioners. On top of that the same part of the population has endured large reductions of wages and pensions. So unfair has become the distribution of the cost to bring down the Greek fiscal deficits, that it has distorted the sociopolitical map of the country. Greece is the only country with three or even four newly appearing or greatly strengthened extremist parties in the Parliament, practically favouring the exit of the country from the European Union. The Greek political spectrum was completely different some years ago with a regular Parliamentary representation of left and right inclined parties. The present picture contains an extreme right-wing almost fascist party and a left utterly populist political formation being represented in force in the legislative. This last one left formation has even gained second place in the popular vote, playing now the role of major opposition in the Parliament. All this distortion of the sociopolitical climate in the country is the direct outcome of three years of unfair distribution of the cost to cut down government deficits, through unfair tax burden distribution. All the Greek governments over the last thirty crisis years and even during the last crisis period didn’t touch the almost totally escaping from taxation market services sector, the professional and the small businesses. In reality Greece came close to a complete economic and political collapse without having yet avoided it altogether, exactly because of this complete distortion of the tax burden. In the core of this deplorable situation there is a lack of political will to reverse this catastrophic prospect. All over the EU According to Algirdas Šemeta this Greek distortion is present in varying degrees all over Europe. Speaking yesterday to the European Parliamentary Committee on Economics he said, “Up to now, I’m afraid that the appetite for full and unreserved coordination (to effectively counter tax evasion and fraud) has been lacking amongst the Member States. And as a result, fraudsters and evaders have been able to use our Single Market as a playground for their activities”. Still the European Commission tries to reverse this. Towards this end Algirdas Šemeta also stressed “It is the reason for the EU Action Plan against tax fraud and evasion, which I brought forward last December. If fully implemented, this Action Plan can dramatically improve our chance of eliminating these pervasive problems, and return hundreds of billions of euro back to the public purse”.

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Countries adopted on Saturday a new global blueprint for tackling rapidly evolving forms of crime, as the UN’s largest gathering on crime prevention and criminal justice opened in Abu Dhabi with a call for stronger international cooperation. The Abu Dhabi Declaration was adopted by acclamation at the opening of the 15th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, bringing governments together around challenges ranging from cybercrime and fraud to the growing criminal exploitation of digital technology. The Declaration highlights an increasingly complex landscape in which services, infrastructure and technology can be exploited by criminals, including emerging trends described as “crime as a service” and “violence as a service”. At the same time, countries committed to making greater use of technology themselves, including by digitalizing justice systems and harnessing artificial intelligence in criminal justice responses. The Declaration stresses that safeguards must accompany those changes, including human oversight, transparency, due process and data protection. ‘Justice cannot be a privilege’ In a video message to the Congress, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed said the meeting was taking place at a time of profound change. “Justice cannot be a privilege. It must protect every person, uphold every person’s rights and leave no one behind,” said Ms. Mohamed. “This Congress is an opportunity to renew our shared commitment to justice and the rule of law, and to translate that commitment into action.” Countries are already being encouraged to put the Declaration into practice through the voluntary Pledge4Justice initiative, under which participating governments are announcing concrete, time-bound actions on crime prevention and criminal justice through 2031. The Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre with its curved glass tower and surrounding buildings reflected in calm water at dusk. UNODC The Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre where the 15th UN Crime Congress is set to take place. From Kyoto to Abu Dhabi Opening the Congress, UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Executive Director Monica Juma framed the gathering as both a response to a changing criminal landscape and a test of international cooperation. “Today, the world convenes in Abu Dhabi to reaffirm that the rule of law and criminal justice are essential to the safety and security of people and the planet,” said Ms. Juma. “At a time when confidence in multilateralism is faltering, let Abu Dhabi be a testament to international cooperation.” Five years after the previous Congress in Kyoto, Japan, Ms. Juma said the world had reached another “inflection point”, with technology and artificial intelligence advancing at extraordinary speed. The same platforms connecting billions of people can also connect criminals, she warned, while digital currencies can conceal illicit profits and digital tools can be used to deceive, manipulate and exploit. Technology, she argued, is not simply accelerating crime but changing its character, while organized criminal networks increasingly exploit weaknesses across borders and institutions. Tweet URL Protecting people as the ‘north star’ Behind those broad trends, Ms. Juma urged delegates to focus on the people most exposed to harm, including children recruited by gangs, women facing violence at home or online, people unable to obtain legal assistance and young people lured into scam networks with promises of a better future. “Protecting these people must be the measure against which we judge our efforts over the coming week,” she said. “It must be our north star.” She called for laws and institutions capable of keeping pace with changing threats, greater access to justice and legal aid, and technology that serves as “a force for good” rather than an accelerator of harm. And while welcoming the Abu Dhabi Declaration as a starting point, Ms. Juma stressed that its impact would ultimately depend on implementation. A week focused on justice Hosted by the United Arab Emirates, the Congress runs through 1 October under the theme Protecting People and Planet in the Digital Age. Some 119 countries are represented, alongside more than 40 justice ministers and other senior officials, with over 5,100 participants from governments, civil society, academia and the private sector. Plenary meetings, workshops, side events and exhibitions will run throughout the session. Organizers are also billing this as the most youth-inclusive Crime Congress yet. Young people are participating in workshops, contributing to follow-up efforts and taking part in a dedicated Youth Lab and art exhibition, following a Youth Forum held ahead of the Congress on 24 and 25 September. UNODC serves as secretariat of the Congress and will support implementation of the Abu Dhabi Declaration.

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Filed Under: Economy Tagged With: Commission, deficits, Greece, Tax avoidance, tax evasion, tax fraude, Šemeta

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