HANGZHOU – The decision by European authorities’ to slap Apple with a huge bill for back taxes was not a decision “against the US”, European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker said on Sunday as world leaders gathered in China for a major economic summit.
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On Sunday, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said the decision to order the U.S. tech giant Apple to pay back taxes to Ireland was the result of “intensive work which has been going on for many years”.
He called on China to accept a monitoring mechanism. Juncker said the order that Apple should pay back 13 billion euros ($14.5 billion) to Ireland’s Treasury was about fairness.
In its conclusion to the three-year investigation, the European Commission decided that the arrangement between the Irish government and Apple, which saw the firm pay levels of tax far below the official rate, constituted illegal state aid. China has also launched the strongest policies to address the problem. “We are really insisting on the need to take this seriously”. Cook has complained in the past that high USA taxes have discouraged the company from bringing those earnings home. He said previous tax orders have affected European companies, including a January ruling that covered 35 enterprises, majority from Europe.
Ireland has attracted multinationals over many years by offering favourable tax deals to generate much-needed jobs and investment.
Apple’s bill far exceeds the previous European Union record for a state aid case: 1.3 billion euros for the Nurburgring race track in Germany.
“This is not a decision against the United States of America”, Juncker told reporters. “We are basing our decisions on facts and on the legislation”.
“We need to find a way to make the global system of taxation more fair – more fair to countries around the world, particularly countries like the U.S.”, he said.
Speaking at the news conference with Obama, May said her government was going ahead with its departure and was looking to create new trading opportunities.
“There will be no second referendum, no attempt to turn the clock back or get out of this”, May said. He said Washington is focused on finishing trade deals with Asia-Pacific governments and the EU. If you would like to discuss another topic, look for a relevant article.
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