Nick Shaxson ■ Jean-Claude Juncker and tax haven Luxembourg, in a picture

Jean-Claude Juncker and tax haven Luxembourg, in a picture

Nick Shaxson

Published:

30 January 2015

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From Gabriel Zucman, an image enhanced by David Walch of Attac-Austria:

Source: Gabriel Zucman; tinyurl.com/njy2al2. (NB Bermuda isn’t in the Caribbean, but in the North Atlantic.)

Juncker, of course, has denied responsibility for his role in Luxembourg’s tax haven activities such as the Luxleaks scandal. In his role at the head of the European Commission it’s politically important for him to say this. But this graph, we think, tells an important story.

The author

Nick Shaxson

Nicholas Shaxson is a journalist and writer on the staff of Tax Justice Network. He is author of the book Poisoned Wells about the oil industry in Africa, published in 2007, and the more recent Treasure Islands: Tax havens and the Men who Stole the World, published by Random House in January 2011. He lives in Berlin.

See author’s full profile

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Comments • 5

David Wright

January 31, 2015 - 6:40 am

While Luxembourg is of course unacceptable, the Netherlands clearly plays a bigger role here, and Ireland also allows generous tax benefits. These three countries are all members of teh EU. Can something not be done at EU level to put an end to tax competition?

Independency Project
January 26, 2016 - 3:11 pm
BANK SECRECY and Tax Havens, should be brought down and demolished in the whole world of course.
But it would be nice if it started in Europe (continent + additional islands), where in fact we have both the Mother (Switzerland) and the Father (England + its colonies) of BANK SECRECY, and several siblings, like indeed the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Ireland, but also Monaco, Liechtenstein, Andorra AND Jersey, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Gibraltar (all actually: England).
This is where the corrupt & criminal elites (the 1%) hide their money, totaling about a third of all global wealth!
This is where all wars, ‘terrorism’ and dictatorships are about, so they cannot be fought with weapons or physically. We can only achieve this with enough Public Opinion and Pressure, which should be wide spread, continuous, insistent and everlasting (as long as BS exists).
The role to awaken and increase this Public Awareness, lies IMHO, in the hands of NGOs and all pacific social movements and activism. They are the ones that should arouse the people and lead the march!
Reply

Gerry Hollerman

January 31, 2015 - 8:25 pm

The chart is highlighting, not just Luxembourg’s increasing portion of tax-haven-protected profits, but Jean-Claude Juncker’s personal influence in promoting Luxembourg’s role as an international low-tax jurisdiction. (For some reason, the German language notations on the two vertical lines has not been translated.) The first line in 1989 notes that Mr. Juncker became the Lux Finance Mininster at this point. The second line at 1995 marks his ascent to Government Leader. Mr. Jucker is the current President of the EU.

Rika Mamdy

June 9, 2015 - 2:00 pm

For me, Luxembourg is heaven on earth!

Nick Shaxson
June 9, 2015 - 2:21 pm
if your “heaven on earth” is extracted at the expense of others, elsewhere, how comfortable are you about that?
Reply