Monday, June 7, 2010



from Richard Murphy. Tax Research UK
www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog

June 7th, 2010

I reproduce the following in the hope you might take the action Christian Aid request:

There is one thing I know about poverty: people made it, so people can end it.

Here’s one thing we can do right now to help end poverty: work to stop tax dodging by unscrupulous businesses.

For every US$10 in aid that flows into poor countries, US$15 slips out through tax dodging.This is money that should be spent building schools and hospitals.

We are inviting companies to be part of the solution.

Click here to help us find out which FTSE100 firms support greater tax transparency.

At Christian Aid, we’re asking for something quite simple: companies should report the profits they make and the tax they pay in all countries in which they operate. In accountancy-speak, this is known as country-by-country reporting.

Last month, we sent the CEOs of the FTSE100 a survey to gauge levels of support for greater transparency and country-by-country reporting - but only 37 have responded so far.

Can you help us chase the remaining 63 companies? With just a few clicks on our website, you can email those companies and urge them to complete our survey: http://action.christianaid.org.uk/survey

It’s down to your hard work that we’ve got this far.

Since you emailed the Big Four accounting firms earlier in the year - asking them to support greater tax transparency - representatives from the Big Four have engaged in a discussion with us. We’ve made the case that greater tax transparency would help developing countries identify where tax dodging is taking place.

The Big Four accounting firms now want us to talk directly to their clients, the UK’s biggest companies.

It’s a real chance for companies to help shape a better future for poor countries.

Please take two minutes to chase the companies that haven’t responded to our survey:

http://action.christianaid.org.uk/survey

Over the coming months, I am going to intensify our campaign for country-by-country tax reporting to make sure that developing countries get the tax revenues they are entitled to.

An end to poverty - it’s a vision we all share. Together we can make it a reality. I hope you will join us in this new fight for justice.

Thanks for your support,

Judith Cavanagh

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