European Parliament now in favour of financial transaction tax
In this context, the parliament welcomed the agreement among the G20 leaders "to work on an international framework for a financial transaction tax", and called for "speedy progress, to ensure that the financial sector contributes fairly towards economic recovery and development, since the costs of the crisis so far are being borne by taxpayers, public services and citizens".(A copy of the resolution in French is found in the Documents section; in English, on the site of the EP . )
In a press release from The European Network on Debt and Development EURODAD, we read comments on the EP's resolution by Sven Giegold. In June, Giegold, who is active within ATTAC Germany, was elected to the European Parliament, where he is a member of the EP's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee and rapporteur on the Eurozone.
Sven Giegold said:
"The Greens welcome the European Parliament's support for a financial transaction tax, a long overdue and important recognition of its benefits in the wake of the financial crisis. The financial transaction tax would reduce speculation in international financial markets and generate revenue desperately needed for the social and ecological conversion of our economies.
Furthermore, the EU Parliament has stressed that a comprehensive response to the crisis must go beyond the issue of re-regulating the global financial sector. Crucial issues such as global imbalances, the volatility of exchange rates and raw material prices must be tackled in a multilateral framework.
Through its call for new economic indicators that go beyond the current focus on GDP, Parliament has signalled that economic recovery must go hand-in-hand with the setting-up of a new economic model. Business as usual would only lead to the next crisis. New economic indicators, which would include social and environmental factors, are crucial for the implementation of a Green New Deal as advocated by the Greens.
It is regrettable that other proposals were rejected by the Conservative EPP and Liberal ALDE political groups. For example, country-by-country reporting for multinational corporations would reduce the risk of massive tax evasion that occurs to the detriment of both developing and industrialised countries. Greens will continue to press for essential reforms on accounting standards."
