This government must now explain to the people why it has spent eight years fighting this case
The government defended corporate interests instead of the public interest when it fought the €13 billion tax judgment, according to Social Democrats Finance Spokesperson Róisín Shortall.
“I welcome today’s judgment of the European Court of Justice, which has reinstated the decision of the European Commission to impose a €13 billion tax penalty on Apple.
“This judgment reflects extremely badly on the Fine Gael-led government which opted to appeal this decision back in 2016. That government put corporate interests over the public interest and wasted the opportunity to invest some or all of this money in critical public services – like housing and healthcare.
“This government, which has continued the legal fight, must now explain to the people why it has spent eight years fighting this case – when it could have had additional billions of euro at its disposal to build tens of thousands of affordable homes or invest in threadbare disability services.
“This case also highlights the ability of corporate behemoths to avoid billions in tax payments all over the world – oftentimes, in full compliance with domestic legal arrangements. According to a conservative estimate from the OECD, multinationals can avoid up to $240 billion each year using base erosion and profit shifting.
“Tax is not just for the little people or small and medium enterprises. Tax justice, and multinationals paying their fair share of tax, is of critical importance for both government revenues and social cohesion.
“Instead of suing to defend the rights of multinationals to pay a pittance in tax, the government should be bolstering its efforts to ensure multinationals pay their fair share.”