Yesterday a report I wrote for the European United Left/Nordic Green Left (GUE/NGL) group in the European Parliament was published. It was used as input for a hearing of the Parliament’s TAX3 committee, at which Hannah Tranberg from ActionAid, Eric Mensah from the Ghana Revenue Authority and UN Tax Committee, and Sandra Gallina of DG Trade… Continue reading The European Union’s tax treaties with developing countries: leading by example?
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“A gathering of international chatterers for the purpose of chattering.” The birth of the OECD’s Committee on Fiscal Affairs.
In my previous post I explored the United Nations’ brief post-war flirtation with a Fiscal Commission, which came stuttering to a halt in 1951 due, it seemed, to the lack of a compelling purpose that might have motivated states to fight to retain it. The United Kingdom had supported a Russian proposal to wind up… Continue reading “A gathering of international chatterers for the purpose of chattering.” The birth of the OECD’s Committee on Fiscal Affairs.
“Futile and unrewarding”: the wilderness years of the international tax regime
Almost all histories of the international tax regime begin with the League of Nations: from the model conventions issued by its Fiscal Committee in 1928, to the Mexico and London draft model conventions. The latter was agreed by a group of primarily European countries in 1946 at Somerset House, just across the road from where I… Continue reading “Futile and unrewarding”: the wilderness years of the international tax regime
The Colombia UK tax treaty: 80 years in the making
Hearson, M, 2017. The UK-Colombia Tax Treaty: 80 Years in the Making. British Tax Review (4):375-384. Today at 2.30pm, the UK parliament’s Third Delegated Legislation Committee will debate tax treaties with Lesotho and Colombia. It will be interesting to see how much debate really takes place, a matter on which I’ve commented before once or… Continue reading The Colombia UK tax treaty: 80 years in the making
Who will chair the new UN tax committee?
As I write this post, the new UN tax committee is in closed session, choosing its new chair. This first act of the committee feels like it will have an important tone-setting impact. There is much speculation about who is the preferred candidate among members from OECD countries, and an assumption that those members will… Continue reading Who will chair the new UN tax committee?
Developing Countries’ Role in International Tax Cooperation
Over the past year I’ve worked with the secretariat of the Intergovernmental Group of 24* on a paper that discusses how developing countries could engage with a range of international tax cooperation issues. The paper can be downloaded here: Developing countries’ role in international tax cooperation [pdf]. The G-24 plays a caucusing role for its… Continue reading Developing Countries’ Role in International Tax Cooperation
Martin Hearson 