PEOPLE’S MOVEMENT / GLUAISEACHT AN PHOBAIL: A DISHONEST DEBATE AMONG DISCREDITED POLITICAL PARTIES May 15, 2010
Posted by guestposter in Economy, European Politics, Irish Politics, Uncategorized.trackback
PEOPLE’S MOVEMENT / GLUAISEACHT AN PHOBAIL
15th May 2010
PRESS RELEASE:
A DISHONEST DEBATE AMONG
DISCREDITED POLITICAL PARTIES
Perhaps one of the more frightening aspects of the recent spat between Fine Gael and the Government over the implications of the proposals contained in the EU Commission document on economic policy co-ordination within the euro zone is the abysmal ignorance on both sides of the argument over what the country signed up to under the Lisbon Treaty.
The Minister for Finance and the Minister for Foreign Affairs both claimed that there was a Protocol attached to the Lisbon Treaty that protected the Irish taxation regime particularly in relation to corporation tax.
The Fine Gael Finance spokesperson seemed unsure about what he and his party had helped to foist on the people of the Republic less than a year ago and seemed to go on the defensive almost immediately when challenged.
No such Protocol exists.
Instead in the run-u to the second Lisbon Referendum, the EU Heads of State went through an elaborate charade to pretend that they were addressing the concerns that had led to the rejection of Lisbon Treaty in the first referendum and came up with a series of “guarantees” ‘to address these concerns in conformity with that treaty’ (i.e. the Lisbon Treaty)
So not a single comma in the Lisbon Treaty was changed. This would have been the case if the Government had secured a Protocol.
So in relation to taxation, the EU Court has the power to order the harmonisation of national indirect taxes if it judges that these cause “a distortion of competition” (Article 113 TFEU, Protocol 27 on the Internal Market and Competition)
In addition, all the evidence points to the fact that tax harmonisation has not gone off the EU Commission’s agenda and that it will emerge as an issue in the very near future.
In the meantime, this country’s political elite seem unaware of the broader reality that monetary union has imposed fiscal rigidity, removed monetary independence and forced economic adjustment through the labour market. It is now time to think the unthinkable in relation to the Euro.
Thanks to the People’s Movement for forwarding this…
The Cedar Lounge Revolution 
While it’s nice to see that the People’s Movement are so concerned that our Corporation Tax levels be kept so low (god forbid that we start taxing our companies at a rate as high as we do our PAYE workers), the juxtaposition of this concern with the fact that indirect taxes could be ‘harmonised’ if they distort competition is more than a bit misleading. Besides there being nothing new here (it preceded Lisbon) it has nothing to do with Corporation Tax (which is a direct tax, not an indirect tax).
Mores the pity.
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You’ve got a point there. I thought that Bruton’s invocation of Corporation Tax during the week was also unwise. There’s more than enough to concern people about budgetary intervention as the proposal stands without roping in more nebulous issues.
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Indeed, but they wouldn’t bother a typical FG voter.
(a) A proposal that EU States let each other know the level of deficit they’re planning next year, and they collectively have some sort of veto over it being so high that it would de-stabilise the Euro? FG voter says “Yes Please!”
(b) A scare story that the EU will force us to increase our Corporation Tax rate to a more sustainable level? FG voter says “No Thanks!”
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That’s true too.
Still, thinking about point a). Without two other aspects it still is problematic. Democratic representation in terms of who makes the decisions in terms of any veto, economic/and social solidarity in terms of assistances in the euro zone.
I can’t help but feel this has the potential to usher in a three speed EU (and given the euro already constitutes one speed and the non euro EU another perhaps that will just give substance to an already existing status quo – but the third part could be a formerly euro grouping).
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