EIRE: TAX EVASION WILL KILL ALMOST 1000 A DAY
Almost 1000 children a day will die between now and 2015 as a result of trade related tax evasion carried on via financial centres
Commenting on a report commissioned by Christian Aid the Chief Executive of Christian Aid Ireland, Margaret Boden said:
'We predict that illegal, trade-related tax evasion alone will be responsible for the deaths of some 5.6m children under the age of five between 2000 and 2015. That's almost 1,000 a day.'
They are victims of a financial system in which poor countries are routinely denied the tax that is rightly theirs by trans-national corporations and other businesses using methods both licit and illicit to lower their tax liability.
'The abuse is so widespread and damaging that it is tantamount to a new slavery,' said Mrs Boden. “The rich are getting richer on the backs of some of the most impoverished and vulnerable communities in the world.'
Christian Aid Ireland are urging the Irish government to support initiatives at the OECD in its efforts to regulate tax havens and end the secrecy they offer. They say the OECD should also promote an international accounting standard that compels companies to publish their accounts on a country by country basis, which will mean that abusive practices can be quickly spotted.
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J B Moffatt Director of Information Celtic League
03/08/08
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