It’s official! UN agrees to framework to tax the rich
After many months of debate, discussion and disapproval from some countries, the United Nations (UN) has agreed by consensus to design a new framework to tax wealthy persons and corporations around the world.
The UN framework will provide countries with a blueprint to implement their own laws at home, giving nations both the technical know-how and political backing to tax the wealth of the richest members of society. This is something that most rich countries have shied away from even amid fierce lobbying pressure.
It is estimated that there is more than twice as much wealth hidden in offshore tax jurisdictions than there are printed dollars and euros in circulation today. As such, this new UN framework could affect top jurisdictions like the BVI that do business with wealthy individuals and corporations.
The tax laws could affect how much money wealthy people have to invest and do business in the BVI and this could reduce profits for the territory’s thriving financial services industry.
The approval of the UN framework was briefly delayed following requests from some countries for minor changes. Nonetheless, the agreement signals a historic shift in global consensus on taxing extreme wealth and is the latest demonstration of the UN’s ability to push the needle on tax reform at a globally inclusive scale.
Contrary to expectations, rich countries from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and other objectors who had voiced opposition to the framework did not make an intervention when it was being adopted.
Analysts at global lobby group Tax Justice Network see this as a positive sign.
“This is another victory on tax secured at the UN through the leadership of global South countries, but for the benefit of people everywhere. Enhancing the technical and political space for national governments to pursue progressive tax measures will, over time, allow countries to generate greater revenues to invest in inclusive public services, while at the same time tackling the extreme wealth inequalities that damage all of our societies,” Alex Cobham, chief executive at the Tax Justice Network said.
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Toothless organization that has no ability to tax whatsoever! It depends on its member nations for financial support, and even half of those members hardly pay.
Why this is even news mystifies me!
Looks like you read it all the way to the end. Why did you read it
I smell a rat, the U.N which is run by the wealthy is trying to control worldwide how it’s rich friends should be taxed, an unelected U.N shall decide for sovereign countries on tax for the rich, so not the finance minister or other experts, so there will be protectionism for the rich where than have a certain future projection of wealth with protection by the government worldwide who have been given instruction like stooges how to treat the rich, so no radical government wanting to curb neocolonism and extractive wealth from our resources usually control by white monopoly capital will ever disrespect these fellas and tax the accordingly is a no no,but on the surface the u.n make it sound as though it will be bringing justice or equality to the tax system which is not so. An unelected foreign body or organization deciding for sovereign countries.
You can use those words all you want but most of them are just not true.
The UN is flawed in many ways, yes, but it is made up of governments, most of them elected by the people. It is not a mystery cabal – every government on earth sends their representatives, each one to represent the interest of their nation.
Pretending it is a scary back room club is not quite right. Sure, the fat, rich racist countries that set it up – UK, US etc – have too much power but it is one of the only places that small countries can wield any influence, especially when they vote together.
Pretending the bad guy is the UN is just cheerleading for the status quo, which is a world run into mass inequality and ecocide by the few greedy mega rich – who happen to love the BVI because we are their willing house slaves, helping them to hide their ill gotten gains.
This is an initiative led by the poor countries of the world to stop the taxes they pay disappearing into black holes that pass through places like the BVI. People are fed up with the rich and corrupt getting richer and corrupter because they have sneaky holes like the BVI to make money disappear instead of taxes being used to build things like roads and schools and hospitals – all the things we all care about and complain about here.
You finance people will have smart-a** arguments about how it will do nothing and all governments waste tax payers money etc – but in the end you are cheering on the removal of money from the many so it can stay hidden by the very few.
BVI people regularly switch from playing the ‘we are the small people oppressed by the world!’ card, to the ‘we have a right to help the big people steal money from the poor of the world’ card. Typical BVI wanting to have it both ways!
Not sure about I am happy taking lectures from the UN or the Tax Justice Network or any other NGO that does not pay tax itself.
is the united kingdom the problem? is england, scotaland, wales and ireland the problem? is the king and queen of the united kingdom/great britain the problem?
Now that statement is the most misleading blob of froth.
I am assuming it is a misquote.
the u.n is useless, they can’t enforce anything they pass there
If the UN were able to enforce this type of a tax then unfortunately it will be a disaster for overseas territories like ours. Even though we feel we don’t see any benefits from the financial system here, it is what keeps the BVI afloat.
A tax system, if designed fairly and equitably would be a good thing in general. In the United States,under mainly a Two-part system, (Democrats and Republicans) taxes the little guy and lets the big guys off the hook. Mitt Romney running against Obama in his second time was paying 8% or 11 % tax.Generally republicans (party) among their various beliefs believe that if the wealthy and businesses and corporations were taxed at s lower, much lower tax would have more money to invest and grow their businesses and hire more employees. Does it really happen? Meanwhile you’d find all over the world people barely surviving on 2,4, and 5 dollars a day,while they countries themselves can not or refuse to repair improve or maintain infrastructure. We see it everywhere.
As much as we in Bvi benefit from Financial Services, the truth is that the wealthy Taxpayers country suffer from the loss of those same dollars that benefits us, the Cayman, Bermuda, Bahamas etc. Warren buffet himself claimed that his secretary pays more tax than he does.
What would happen if the “rich” closed their businesses and moved elsewhere? What would happen to all the workers? and economy? The UN are power hungry sex addicts/pedophiles that meet in New York once a year to justify themselves and for their endless orgy