Civil society organisations from across Europe have launched a tax justice pledge in the lead up to the European election, which take place across EU Member States from the 23 – 26 May 2019. The tax justice pledge calls on election candidates to commit to supporting five policy priorities, should they be elected as Members of European Parliament (MEPs).

Globally, corporate tax avoidance is costing countries an estimated US$500 billion per year, while in the EU, the annual loss to profit shifting by multinational corporations is estimated to be €50-70 billion annually. In the world’s poorest countries, one type of corporate tax avoidance alone is costing countries an estimated US$100 billion per year. This money is greatly needed to fund public services such as healthcare and education, as well as climate action and sustainable development.

The tax justice pledge is an initiative of Tax Justice Europe (TJ-E), coordinated by Eurodad. TJ-E is the European regional hub of the Global Alliance for Tax Justice (GATJ), a movement of more than 70 civil society organisations, trade unions and activists across Europe, united in campaigning for transparency and tax justice. 

The pledge website enables citizens to contact their national candidates and more than 400 candidates from 26 EU countries have already signed the pledge. Ask your candidates to sign the tax justice pledge (below) here.