The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) adopted on Wednesday 17 July, at its plenary session, an opinion supporting the Commission in its ambition to launch a debate on how to reform the decision-making process in the field of EU tax policy.
In its text, the EESC supports the idea of a debate on the gradual transition from unanimity to qualified majority voting in the EU Council on tax issues, as proposed by the European Commission in its September Communication (see EUROPE 12172/22), while recognising that at all times each Member State must have sufficient opportunities to participate in the decision-making process.
The opinion underlines that today, the unanimity rule mainly gives the impression of being “politically anachronistic, legally problematic and economically counterproductive”.
“The unanimity rule in taxation made sense in the 1950s, with six Member States. Now with 28, it makes it more difficult to reach any compromise at all and to tackle economic and financial challenges”, said the draftsman, Mihai Ivașcu, member of the Romanian delegation and of the EESC's “Diversity Europe” group.
In the EESC's view, however, the process will take time and will require “an EU budget that is as robust as required”, as well as better coordination of economic policy and analysis of existing tax provisions. (Original version in French by Marion Fontana)