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European Commission proposes new tax on banks
Accountancy News |
27/05/2010
The European Commission has announced plans for an EU-wide tax on banks, as part of plans to guard against future financial crises.
A new levy on leading finance institutions has been proposed, the purpose being to alleviate the taxpayer burden should another bank fail.
Michel Barnier, the EU's internal market commissioner, has backed the proposal, expressing his support for the "polluter pays" principle.
He commented: "We need to build a system which ensures that the financial sector will pay the cost of banking crises."
Should the plans get the go-ahead, all EU banks' assets, liabilities and profits could be taxed from 2011.
However, European governments could be set to clash over the way the levy is managed, with both France and the UK wishing to use receipts in the event of a national crash but Germany favouring a ring-fenced fund.
Discussions over the commission's proposal are likely to take place at the G20 leaders' summit in Toronto next month.
Posted by Stephen Wilkinson
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