On Tuesday 23 May, several European finance ministers once again expressed their concerns about the proposed common consolidated corporate tax base.
The greatest misgivings were probably voiced by Luxembourg. According to the Commission's impact assessment, the Grand Duchy's economy would be the most affected by a harmonisation of the rules on the common consolidated corporate tax base, as it would lose 1% of GDP. During the public session, the Luxembourg finance minister, Pierre Gramnega, encouraged his colleagues to consider what the impact of this reform on their tax revenue would be.
After Luxembourg, Denmark would appear to be most concerned for its tax base, which would be reduced as a result of CCCTB. However, concerns related to the proposal's impact on the national budgets were also voiced, to varying degrees, by Finland, Sweden, Bulgaria, the Netherlands, Croatia, Austria and Poland. Belgium made no reference to this, but is carrying out its own impact assessment on the dossier. The Commission stresses that it stands ready to clarify its own calculations or help to put together new ones, but seems to consider that the countries which have started such an analysis are not sufficiently transparent about their methods or figures.
On the tax incentives provided for by the Commission, such as the super-deduction for research and development costs, several states (Lithuania, Hungary, Ireland) called for more flexibility. Croatia expressed concerns that the system is too complex. Finland and Bulgaria argued the case for as little flexibility as possible. Luxembourg asked whether the Commission's incentives would be compatible with EU State aid rules.
France has launched a plea in favour of CCCTB, on the grounds that its citizens no longer understand the tax rivalry between member states. The Commission wound up the debate by stating that the project was important due to the “external pressure on our Union”, but agreed to some flexibility for a compromise. (Original version in French by Élodie Lamer)