On Thursday 19 October, the discussion between European leaders on taxing internet giants "was the opportunity to note openly that there are a number of countries that are reluctant to move on towards a more common strategy", Belgium's Prime Minister Charles Michel stated.
Luxembourg's representatives were reportedly the first to speak, requesting that the ongoing OECD discussions be taken into account to protect the EU's competitiveness. Most countries apparently supported this approach – particularly Ireland's Prime Minister Leo Varadkar. If the EU introduced a single tax on turnover, as France advocates, rather than collecting taxes, the EU would provide a benefit to the USA, Japan or the UK post-Brexit, Varadkar said when he arrived at the European summit.
Unlike the draft conclusions that did the rounds, the text that was adopted requests that fair taxation of all businesses in the digital sector be made "in line with the work currently underway at the OECD". "At the same time, we ask (the Commission), without waiting for the OECD report, to draw up proposals in order to continue feeding the political discussion", Michel stated. These proposals are expected by the leaders in early 2018.
The conclusions also identify the components of a successful digital Europe. Compared with a draft of 9 October, the new text delays the period for adopting the regulation on the free flow of data (FFD) and the code on electronic communications, speaking of June 2018 and no longer the end of 2017. It also underlines the importance of "adequate" rules on the free flow of data with third countries in trade agreements, "without prejudice to EU legislation". The text furthermore calls for online crime and terrorism to be fought, and for frequencies to be unblocked in a coordinated way by 2020. In addition, the conclusions ask the Commission to put forward the necessary initiatives "with a view to enable the EU to explore new markets through radical risk-based innovations". (Original version in French by Elodie Lamer and Sophie Petitjean with MB and CG)