Euro tax? Non Merci

The Indo report that the new EU President Herman Van Rompuy wishes to level new EU wide taxes to raise money directly for the EU.

“The financing of the welfare state, irrespective of the social reform we implement, will require new resources,” he said. “The possibility of financial levies at European level needs to be seriously reviewed.”

Europe has a much older population that Ireland and is dogged with chronic long term unemployment – Ireland with it’s dynamic young population (and Britain too) must not be put on the hook for these social debts. This effort must be resisted.

The Irish Deparment of Finance have insisted taxation remains a matter for member states, while British Tory MEP Leader Timothy Kirkhope insists –

Competition in Europe depends on member states being allowed to have competitive tax regimes

We replayed your Lisbon Treaty referendum, but most of us who voted yes did so on assurances that the Eurosceptics warning of such moves were wrong. If the EU attempts to reduce national sovereignty over taxation it will endanger the entire project.

Mack

No bio, some books worth reading – The Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves – Matt Ridley .

Crisis Economics: A Crash Course in the Future of Finance -Nouriel Roubini, Stephen Mihm