Watching a documentary on TV about mining in Zambia, and it targeted Glencore for making a huge profit and not paying much tax in Zambia (where their raw material copper comes from). Google’s the same, of course. And Starbucks, and so many others.
It’s complicated. What is the proper amount of tax to pay? In this international business climate, where money can be transferred to quickly and easily combined with the open economy means that money moves quickly. And profits are declared in countries with the lowest tax regimes – which is, for the shareholders of the business, the right thing to do.
But something’s up. We can’t keep at this race to the bottom of lower and lower tax, and particularly in a world where the most deserving countries (i.e. the ones where the value is “created”) reap so little of the benefit.
It’s not a moral duty for a single company. However, it’s hard to see how it’s not one of the most pressing issues to fix in our global economy.
raam thakrar 