The first round of negotiations will run for two weeks, and the agenda goes to the heart of the matter, namely the legally binding commitments that governments will take on when signing the future convention and protocols. First up are discussions about commitments on division of taxing rights between countries, taxation of services in the digitalised economy, and how to tackle tax disputes.

A large group of civil society organisations and trade unions from around the world will be on the ground in New York to follow the session. This includes Tove Maria Ryding, Tax Coordinator at the European Network on Debt and Development (Eurodad) and Markus Trilling, Senior Policy and Advocacy Officer for Progressive Environmental Taxation at Eurodad.

Commenting on the upcoming negotiations, Tove Maria Ryding said:

“This is a truly historic moment - at long last, it is time to start rewriting the deeply flawed and unjust global tax rules. It is a unique opportunity to fight inequalities, stop tax havens, and make sure the world’s wealthiest individuals and multinational corporations start paying their share of tax.

“The discussion about how the right to tax cross-border activities should be split between countries will not exactly be a walk in Central Park, but it is very clear that a fair, transparent and sustainable system would be a big win for everyone. The UN Tax Convention is a chance for governments to write an international peace agreement on tax, and start putting an end to all the disputes, chaos, tax abuse and injustice.”

The UN process is the first time that all countries are able to participate on an equal footing when global tax rules get developed, although at the Organisational Session in February this year, the United States decided to walk out. This followed a long list of other examples of international processes that the US had left, including the UN climate negotiations.

Ryding commented:

“It was never a question of whether the US would implement the agreement – the last decades have shown they never do. But at the OECD tax negotiations, the US has developed a bad habit of insisting on writing the rules before they leave. We are glad that they will not be doing that in the UN tax negotiations.

“It is also a bit ironic that some OECD countries keep raising concerns about whether the UN Tax Convention will duplicate the OECD deals – it is extremely unlikely that anyone would want to duplicate that painstaking mess.”

Commenting on the upcoming negotiations about tax and sustainable development, Markus Trilling said:

“The mandate for the Tax Convention is clear – the job is to establish an international tax system for sustainable development. Now it is time for governments to walk the talk, and deliver win-win solutions that can combat inequalities and strengthen environmental action in tandem. One very obvious example is to introduce a polluter pays tax on the large fossil fuel companies that are currently benefiting from climate destruction while paying very little tax.”

ENDS

Media contact: Julia Ravenscroft, Communications Manager at Eurodad on: [email protected]/ +44 7958184695.