Taxes pay teachers. Taxes train nurses. Taxes maintain roads, deliver medicine, and provide clean water. We all pay tax, but right now, big companies aren't paying as much as they should in developing countries. This takes billions of dollars away from vital public services every year and the world's poorest people are suffering as a result.
ActionAid estimates that developing countries lose over US$200 billion to tax avoidance and US$138 billion to tax breaks every single year. These are funds that could help educate young children, heal the sick and end suffering.
A big part of this problem is tax treaties – deals between two countries, which carve up tax rights. ActionAid has shown how many rich countries have signed unfair tax deals with poor countries.
Right now, Ireland's tax treaties restrict poor countries' tax rights and help multinational companies dodge taxes. Ireland's deals are not doing enough to help poor countries collect taxes to pay for schools and medicine.
But it doesn't have to be this way.
Take action today and tell Minister for Finance Michael Noonan you want fair tax deals for developing countries. ActionAid will deliver your signature to Minister Noonan in advance of the budget.
Dear Minister Noonan,
Tax is powerful. It funds schools and hospitals everywhere. We all pay tax, but right now, big companies aren't paying as much as they should in developing countries. This takes billions of dollars away from vital public services every year and the world’s poorest people are suffering as a result.
A big part of this problem is tax treaties. ActionAid's Mistreated report has shown how these deals are restricting lower and lower-middle income countries tax rights and reducing the amount of tax companies pay.
Ireland has made strong progress in renegotiating its tax treaties with Zambia and Pakistan, but we're not doing well enough.
Ireland's leadership in international development is world-renowned. Now it's time to ensure our tax treaties with lower income and lower middle income countries are protecting poorer countries' tax rights and ability to develop.
[Your comment here]
We urgently call on you to:
- Adopt the UN Model Double Taxation Convention between Developed and Developing Countries (the UN model) as the minimum standard, from which negotiations can begin.
- Include strong and effective anti-abuse clauses in all double taxation treaties.
- Introduce greater transparency by subjecting treaty negotiation, ratification and impact assessments to far greater public scrutiny.
- Review tax treaties across government departments to ensure objectives and potential impacts are in line with One World, One Future and Ireland’s policy coherence for development framework.
- Introduce greater transparency through public Country by Country Reporting.
Thank you,
[Your name here]
