Tax Justice Lëtzebuerg (Luxembourg) launched

Via email, we just received this:

“This Wednesday « Collectif Tax Justice Lëtzebuerg » went public. Initiated following the Luxleaks revelations, this collective brings together about thirty citizens calling for a public debate which questions the usefulness, the legitimacy and the merits of the abusive exploitation of aggressive tax planning in Luxembourg.”

This is not an official TJN initiative, though it is part of the broader global and generic tax justice movement and we’re friends with a couple of the participants: we welcome this new body wholeheartedly. The accompanying press release is below.

Creation of the Tax Justice Lëtzebuerg Collective

This Wednesday, the « Collectif Tax Justice Lëtzebuerg » went public. Initiated following the Luxleaks revelations, this collective brings together about thirty citizens who call for a public debate which questions the usefulness, the legitimacy and the merits of the abusive exploitation of aggressive tax planning by Luxembourg.

Origins of the Collective

A little over a year ago, the Luxleaks revelations brought to light a large number of tax avoidance practices, implemented by transnational corporations and stakeholders of the financial centre, with, at the very least, the consent of Luxembourg’s authorities. These practices, which have as a result the erosion of the tax base of corporations in numerous countries, as well as the loss of billions of euros in tax revenue for the budgets of concerned states, obviously raise the question of tax justice.

The Luxleaks revelations have strongly resonated in the international media, but also in Luxembourg, where many people were outraged by the practices concerned. Following this, a group of people began meeting to debate the issue at hand and constituted a citizens’ collective, which took the name “Collectif Tax Justice Lëtzebuerg”.

Objectives of the Collective

The objective of this group is to bring together people who are interested in the issue of offshore finance and who want to cooperate to:

1. analyse issues concerning tax justice on a global level as well as in Luxembourg;
2. contribute to the public debate on the questions of tax justice and the financial sector, in Luxembourg, in Europe, and beyond;
3. cooperate with any person or entity, including whistleblowers, on the issues related to tax justice;
4. analyse and communicate about options for a transition towards a socially responsible and sustainable economy.

The Appeal of the Collective

For now, the Collective has been constituted as a de facto association and calls upon any interested individuals to support its Appeal “for a free, open and constructive debate about offshore finance in Luxembourg” and to participate in the debates which will be organised in the weeks to come. In the medium term, the group intends to organise conferences on the topic of tax justice, debate about the role and protection of whistleblowers and participate actively in discussions in Luxembourg and abroad on the initiatives of the OECD, the European Union and other relevant for a to end the most damaging tax practices. Indeed, since the Luxleaks revelations, it has been discovered that several other EU Member States have practices comparable to those of Luxembourg.

Beyond questions of tax policy, the Collective also intends to tackle the issue of the excessive dependency of our economy on the financial sector, as well as the impact of the financial centre on real estate speculation, the competitiveness of small- and medium-sized enterprises and income inequality.

First Event organised by the Collective

As a first event, the Tax Justice Lëtzebuerg Collective invites you to a conference on the topic of:

Don’t miss the Tax Justice Train
The Future of Europe is also built on better tax policies

The scope of tax evasion, the progress necessary to get to fairer taxation and the perspectives of this debate in Europe.

With Christian Chavagneux, Editor at Alternatives Économiques

Wednesday, 27 January 2016 at 18:30

at the Nouvelles Rotondes
Luxembourg, Bonnevoie

For more information:  www.taxjustice.lu

Update and Endnote: true to the “Financial Captured State” nature of Luxembourg, this first article about the new initiative is headlined Tax Justice Luxembourg: only just created, already criticised. Including a contribution from Nicolas Henckes, Secretary General of the Luxembourg Employers Lobby, whose Twitter Feed hilariously suggests that TJN is a shill for the City of London. Perhaps he should read some of our materials.