There are two big ‘policy coherence’ issues when it comes to taxation and the way that development assistance works. The first is the way donors often demand tax exemptions for aid-funded projects. If you think about how aid can be quite a large share of GDP in some low-income countries, these are large sums at… Continue reading From theory to practice: development finance institutions and Global Forum peer reviews
Category: Tax as a development issue
Thoughts on Deloitte and the China-Mauritius-Mozambique route
Sunday’s Observer carried a story, prompted by ActionAid, based on a presentation given by Deloitte to a group of Chinese investors. The presentation explained how to avoid withholding tax and capital gains tax in Mozambique by routing the investment through Mauritius. It’s great to see this kind of common or garden tax arbitrage highlighted and… Continue reading Thoughts on Deloitte and the China-Mauritius-Mozambique route
Is tax treaty arbitration really a bad thing for developing countries?
I’m at the United Nations tax committee annual session this week, where I’ve learnt that I have to be careful what I write here, after a couple of posts from this blog were included in an input document [pdf]. Erk! I’ve been taking the opportunity to discuss with delegates the recent article [£] by the… Continue reading Is tax treaty arbitration really a bad thing for developing countries?
‘Spillover analysis’ as a frame of reference for tax and development policy
Last year, when Parliament’s International Development Committee was conducting an inquiry into tax and development, ActionAid (where I worked) was calling on the government to assess the impact of changes to the UK’s Controlled Foreign Companies (CFC) rules on developing countries. At the time, we were citing a report from the IMF, World Bank, OECD… Continue reading ‘Spillover analysis’ as a frame of reference for tax and development policy
Double tax treaties: a poisoned chalice for developing countries?
It’s been an interesting couple of days here at Strathmore University Business School in Nairobi. I’m at a conference to launch the School’s new Tax Research Centre, which has brought together tax officials, tax practitioners and academics to address some critical issues for Kenya, including anti-avoidance, taxing multinationals and tax treaties. The quality of discussion… Continue reading Double tax treaties: a poisoned chalice for developing countries?
Satellites in geostationary orbit: a new tax justice issue?
When I made an amused reference to item on satellites in the new UN tax committee’s agenda, I wasn’t really sure what it was about. Richard Murphy thought it might be a plan to create tax havens in space. But, now that the UN secretariat have released some preliminary documents for the committee meeting next… Continue reading Satellites in geostationary orbit: a new tax justice issue?
Martin Hearson 