G8 for Transparency?
“Back in January, in a speech at Davos, David Cameron announced that the theme of his G8 Presidency would be the 3Ts – Trade, Tax and Transparency. Great excitement ensued among the anti-corruption community. Now the summit is over, how much do we think have things changed?
There are mixed views from civil society. The Tax Justice Network, quoted in the Guardian, is disappointed about the progress on tax reform. Of course, some will feel let down by slow progress in their own specialist areas; but TI’s interest is primarily in transparency, and as it relates to corruption, and we judge the Summit’s success by progress on those issues.
Global Witness gave the G8 Communique a cautious welcome under the headline ‘The beginning of the end of corporate secrecy? G8 strikes a blow against corruption – but still more to do’.
How you judge the G8 Summit’s success will depend on what your expectations were. For those who viewed it as a one-off chance for a G8-wide agreement on global tax transparency – or a global trade deal, or Syria – it will be a disappointment. For the real specialist, there were some notable gaps in areas such as trust ownership and transfer pricing. For those who have been plugging away for years to get arcane issues such as beneficial ownership into the public eye, it will be seen as an encouraging step on a long journey.”
Read more about G8 Transparency from TI UK here: http://bit.ly/1yAamrP
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