The European Commission has tabled its controversial financial transaction tax (FTT)....That word doesn't mean what you think it means, unless you use Britspeak, we guess;
...despite the fact that only 11 member states out of 27 support it.
The tax, proposed by Commissioner Algirdas Semeta in Brussels, has been adopted by 11 eurozone states, including France, Germany and Spain.
The FTT aims to raise public funds and encourage more responsible trading by financial institutions.
C'est sur la table. And that ain't good;
Chas Roy-Chowdhury, head of taxation at the the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) told the BBC: "This tax is actually quite draconian and bad for the eurozone. It will drive a coach and horses through the single market and force banks to relocate outside the FTT zone."
OppositionThe tax, known as the Tobin tax after the economist who came up with the idea, was proposed by the EC in September 2011.
But the 27 member states could not agree, with Britain in particular voicing opposition to the proposal.
As a result 11 eurozone countries applied to go it alone under "enhanced co-operation" rules.
The Commission agreed and the European Union's Council of Finance Ministers adopted the proposal in January 2013.Quelle démocratie!
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