No politics in Apple case – commission
THE EUROPEAN Commission denied its demand that Apple hand 13 billion (R210bn) in back taxes to Ireland was, in the pungent phrase of Apple’s chief executive, Tim Cook, “total political c***”.
But, said the senior EU officials involved, the decision certainly had a strong political element, even if Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said she was confident her case would stand up to Cook’s appeal on its legal merits alone.
“Being political should not be confused with politicised,” said a spokeswoman for commission chief, Jean-Claude Juncker. For him, fighting tax avoidance had been a “top priority” since before he took over the EU executive. “The drive towards fairer taxation is in president Juncker’s political guidelines.”
At the same time, Vestager was an “entirely independent” enforcer of EU competition law, she added. Clamp down Efforts, including in the US, to clamp down on tax avoidance were political in the sense that all states, with budgets under strain, faced pressure from voters to claw back cash from other people, tax experts and government officials said.
For EU institutions, the struggle is less for money – Apple’s cash will go to Ireland if Vestager wins her case. What Brussels is fighting for is the EU’s survival against eurosceptics such as the Brexiteers. The $14.5bn (R209.6bn) demand was engineered for shock and awe, the EU official said.
Apple and the Irish government said Vestager was rewriting the iPhone maker’s quarter-century of history in Ireland. Apple denied that Dublin gave it tax breaks amounting to illegal state aid.
What has changed is the politics. The financial crisis has impoverished Western governments just as footloose young tech firms have become rich without paying much tax.
“It’s political in the sense that, if the commission is prioritising the allocation of its resources, then clearly tax ‘You should… protect the few and the small against those who want to misuse their muscle.’
Asked about Cook’s comments about the EU’s “political” motives, she said: “I don’t think the courts will hear any kind of political opinions or feelings… They want the facts of the case.”
Predecessors have also taken on Washington, among them Mario Monti, later Italy’s prime minister, and former commissioner Neelie Kroes.
There might be more to come, Vestager said. Her staff are looking at about 1 000 inquiries where firms may have cut tax deals.
Vestager summed up her political credo in the 2014 interview with Reuters: “I was brought up with a very strong value. That you should always protect the few and the small against those who want to misuse their muscle.” – Reuters