Sony Kapoor's growth compact

Sheila Killian: Sony Kapoor proposes a Growth Compact here - worth a read, especially Title III on taxes: Member states, particularly those facing unsustainable fiscal deficits, shall undertake to increase tax revenues from taxes that have the least negative impact on growth and preferably deliver a double dividend by penalizing activities that are harmful which would include An EU-wide increase in carbon taxes the revenue from which should be split between financing public investments, closing deficits and decreasing employment taxes at low levels of income particularly in countries that are facing very high levels of unemployment A Union co-ordinated but Member State implemented approach to implementing levies on bank balance sheets that are structured to discourage excessive dependence on short-term wholesale funding that was one of the major causes of the financial crisis A Union co-ordinated but Member State implemented approach to implementing Financial Transaction Taxes along the lines of the UK based Stamp Duty with a goal to broaden the tax base to include bond and derivative markets. Such a tax, it is noted, can be implemented at the level of individual Member States so unanimity is not required. The tax should be structured in a manner that particularly penalizes high-frequency trading and trading in financial instruments that are excessively opaque or complex A Union co-ordinated but differentiated approach to implementing / increasing taxes on passive wealth such as land value taxes, property taxes, estate taxes and wealth taxes

Dr Sheila Killian     @sheilakillian

Dr Sheila Killian is Assistant Dean, Research and Director, Principles for Responsible Management Education at the Kemmy Business School, University of Limerick. Her research addresses sustainability, accountability and the common good, with a focus on professional expertise, tax policy and business school education. She holds a PhD in taxation from UCD.

Prior to joining UL, Dr Killian worked as a tax advisor with Arthur Andersen, KPMG and Ernst & Young, and in air-finance and educational software development. A Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ireland, she is the author of Corporate Social Responsibility: a Guide with Irish Experiences (2012).