Should the UK leave the European Union?

Message boards : Politics : Should the UK leave the European Union?
Message board moderation

To post messages, you must log in.

Previous · 1 · 2

AuthorMessage
Profile Wiggo
Avatar

Send message
Joined: 24 Jan 00
Posts: 36542
Credit: 261,360,520
RAC: 489
Australia
Message 1613213 - Posted: 13 Dec 2014, 8:41:39 UTC - in response to Message 1613210.  

Are you implying that UK based finance companies are doing more illegal things that those in other countries?

I'm saying its ridiculous to blame Juncker for doing this kind of stuff when your own government, or indeed, any government anywhere in the world, does the exact same thing. Face it, this is business as usual. No one likes it, but quitting the EU is not gonna change anything. In fact, as I explained previously, it would only make it worse, as the UK would have to compensate for the fact it just made itself even less relevant on the world stage, and the only way to do that is give businesses even more freedom to do whatever the hell they want to do.

You do realise that Amazon in 2012 paid only £2.4M in tax to the UK government on sales of over £4Billion, because of the way it has it's business arrangements in Luxemburg, where it says it is paying it's EU taxes, but it doesn't**. And it had the cheek to get £2.5M in subsidies to expand the warehouse in Scotland.

**a quote from a EU competition commissioner Joaquin Almunia
Most of Amazon's European profits are "are recorded in Luxembourg but are not taxed in Luxembourg".


So it's not paying taxes for sales in your country also.

P.S. Want to comment on Starbucks coffee beans and the arrangement with your country.

Thankfully a lot of countries are pushing to have those tax haven loopholes closed and hopefully they'll win.

Cheers.
ID: 1613213 · Report as offensive
Мишель
Avatar

Send message
Joined: 26 Nov 13
Posts: 3073
Credit: 87,868
RAC: 0
Netherlands
Message 1613255 - Posted: 13 Dec 2014, 11:09:42 UTC - in response to Message 1613210.  

You do realise that Amazon in 2012 paid only £2.4M in tax to the UK government on sales of over £4Billion, because of the way it has it's business arrangements in Luxemburg, where it says it is paying it's EU taxes, but it doesn't**. And it had the cheek to get £2.5M in subsidies to expand the warehouse in Scotland.

**a quote from a EU competition commissioner Joaquin Almunia
Most of Amazon's European profits are "are recorded in Luxembourg but are not taxed in Luxembourg".


So it's not paying taxes for sales in your country also.

P.S. Want to comment on Starbucks coffee beans and the arrangement with your country.

So how will quitting the EU fix this? Corporations will still move their taxes around, looking for the lowest rates to pay, regardless of your status as an EU member. But at least with the EU, it would be possible to set up Europe wide tax rules.
ID: 1613255 · Report as offensive
Previous · 1 · 2

Message boards : Politics : Should the UK leave the European Union?


 
©2024 University of California
 
SETI@home and Astropulse are funded by grants from the National Science Foundation, NASA, and donations from SETI@home volunteers. AstroPulse is funded in part by the NSF through grant AST-0307956.