A confused economy: multinationals, tax havens and embezzlement

An important new report from Eurodad, on the black holes in modern economics:

Press release: launch of the report: A confused economy: multinationals, tax havens and embezzlement

07 December 2010

"Who are the most profit-making workers in the world?: the Chinese, the Bermudans or the Americans?

Which country is the number one exporter of bananas to Europe?: Jersey, Equador or Costa Rica?

For which country do we have the highest expectations for the future?: The British Virgin Islands, The USA or China?

The responses to these questions are far from being obvious...this is not least because of the massive use of tax havens by multinational companies, which distorts and falsifies the economy.

The report "A confused economy", launched today, highlights the distortions between the real economy and the indicators that guide the G20 and the International Financial Institutions. Investments, trade, savings, production- the report shows how the use of offshore financial centres makes any measurement of these indicators impossible. At the heart of this economic lie, the report points to the important role of multinationals and banks- the top users of tax havens.

The results of some very thorough research on the activities of the top 50 European companies, it delivers an unprecedented overview of the subsidiaries of these companies in financial black holes. While in 2011 France will chair the G8 and G20, the report also provides an overview of the fight against tax evasion since the G20 in London and recalls the expectations of civil society in this area, concerned with a greater fairness in both North and South.

The editorial of the report is available in English.
Read the executive summary of the report in French.
Read the full report in French.
The press release in French is attached below.
Eurodad is offering interviews (in English) with the author of the report, Jean Merckaert, in Brussels from 2pm Tuesday 7th December and all day Wednesday 8th December, to coincide with the launch of the report and Eurodad and the Task Force on Financial Integrity and Economic Development's conference "Fighting illicit flows from developing countries. What next for the EU agenda?"

Contact Miguel Carapeto, Eurodad, on +32 (0) 2 894 4640 for a telephone interview or to meet the author in person.

This report was produced under the consortium "Regulating finance for development" which consists of six European NGOs: BWP, CRBM, Eurodad, Glopolis, WEED and CCFD Earth Solidarity. www.regulatefinancefordevelopment.org.

Because the funding of the poorest states is not just about aid but justice and restitution of wealth that belongs to them, CCFD Terre solidaire is committed to long-standing commitment to the mobilisation of domestic resources in developing countries, notably tax revenues. Each year, tax avoidance by multinationals lost to developing countries is 125 billion euros in revenue, representing 4 times the amount estimated by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations needed to eradicate hunger. To fight against this scourge, CCFD Terre Solidaire launched in September 2010 a vast citizen mobilisation: the campaign "Help the money to leave the tax havens." Objective: To make the fight against tax evasion a priority under the French presidency of the G20. More info: www.aidonslargent.org.

You can see a review in Le Parisien here, in French.