The focus of the EP’s new committee on taxation (FISC)

The European Parliament’s newly established committee on taxation (FISC) will become the centre of debates on tax related issues, according to Paul Tang, the committee’s newly elected chair.

Even though the European Parliament had several tax committees over the years, they were dissolved and re-established following to tax scandals. By creating a permanent committee on taxation (FISC), it is not only possible to continue the work of the previous committees on fact-finding and raising public awareness, but also to create a long-term vision and program.

According to the new chair of FISC, the aim of this committee on one hand is to tax even the richest and biggest corporations (e.g. Google or Amazon) who alone avoid between EUR 50 billion and EUR 190 billion tax annually, and on the other hand to promote sustainability by making polluters pay. Mr. Tang believes that by taxing these companies, it is possible to not only get out of the crisis, but also to maintain the trust of the EU citizens.

In addition to the above, FISC also plans to continue the tendencies of the recent years, namely, the fight against EU tax havens who cost the governments of other EU Member States over EUR 40 billion each year. For this reason, FISC should have a strong opinion on this question, i.e. that these EU tax haven countries should reform their tax systems, otherwise their recovery or resilience plans will not be approved.

The new chair of FISC trusts that this permanent committee will be able to promote transparency and be the voice of the European citizens by creating change.