Brussels, 17/01/2008 (Agence Europe) - After the summer break, the European Commission will present its proposal for a directive aimed at bringing in a Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base (CCCTB), said Commissioner Kovács, who is responsible for taxation policy, speaking on Thursday 17 January at a CEPS (Centre for European Policy Studies) debate on this thorny tax issue. It would, however, be very risky for the Commission to adopt this legislative proposal before the Irish referendum takes place, as opposition to the CCCTB proposal is extremely strong in Ireland. The CEPS has presented a note on the tax problems encountered by the companies, of which there are currently about 60, that have opted for the status of European Company, and on the advantages that they could have from the CCCTB.
Mr Kovács pointed out that the next few months will be very important in so far as the Commission will finalise its impact assessment study prior to any legislative initiative. When asked about the support to be had from France, he admitted that he had high expectations of the French authorities when it comes to taxation policy in general, also speaking of support from Germany, Spain, Italy and the Benelux countries. He was “impressed” by the results of a recent KPMG survey showing that 80% of companies would be happy to have a harmonised tax base at EU level allowing corporate taxation to be calculated. And if there is not unanimity in Council? Mr Kovács went on to say that, if, within a “reasonable” lapse of time after the presentation of the legislative proposal, they see that unanimity is impossible, then they will resort to “strengthened cooperation”. In his view, this is a solution that would be the “second best scenario”.
The commissioner then refuted a number of arguments put forward by CCCTB cynics who say that harmonisation of the corporate tax base is not the Trojan Horse of Europe that would, once the legislation is adopted, lead to harmonisation of the rates. “Member states will keep their tax sovereignty”, he stressed. Answering the fears of member states like Slovakia or certain Baltic States that have a “flat tax” policy, Mr Kovác stressed that the future harmonised corporate tax base would be as broad as possible and that the logic of it would be very similar to the approach followed by a single tax policy. Admitting that he finds it difficult to understand the opposition to the project voiced by certain political decision-makers, he would prefer to receive “constructive ideas” from them. Several times, Internal Market Commissioner McCreevy publicly opposed the CCCTB (see EUROPE 9365) while his counterpart responsible for taxation is of the view that this project will contribute to improving the way the internal market operates. (M.B.)