G7 meeting kicks off with corporate tax deal ‘in sight’
LONDON: Group of Seven finance ministers kicked off talks on Friday, with optimism growing that the world’s wealthiest countries will support Us-backed plans for a minimum global corporate tax.
British finance minister Rishi Sunak was hosting the meet— held in person after an easing of Covid restrictions and attended by counterparts from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States.
The talks were preparing the ground for a broader summit of G7 leaders in Cornwall, southwest England starting on June 11, which will include US President Joe Biden on his first foreign tour since taking office in January.
“It is increasingly clear that in a complex, global, digital economy, we cannot to continue to rely on a tax system that was largely designed as in the 1920s,” Sunak said in openhope ing remarks.
“And I would just say this: The world has noticed. And I believe they have high expectations for what we all can agree over the coming days.
“Opportunities to make truly lasting reforms like this do not come very often, and I sincerely that we seize the moment.”
According to a draft communique seen by AFP, the finance chiefs and central bankers of the world’s seven richest nations will express “strong support” and a “high level of ambition” over a minimum global minimum corporate tax rate.
They then hope to reach broader agreement at a G20 finance meeting scheduled for July.
Ministers also plan to commit to “sustain policy support”, or stimulus, for “as long as necessary” to nurture economic recovery, while addressing climate change and inequalities in society, according to the document.
Furthermore, they will urge “equitable, safe and affordable access to Covid-19 vaccines” everywhere.
The thorny topic of the regulation of digital currencies such as bitcoin will also be on the agenda.