The EPP Group in the European Parliament has welcomed today's law proposals on more EU rules on how to fight tax avoidance by companies operating in Europe. "This is the moment of truth in which we will see the sincerity of the EU Member States. States which oppose these rules want to base their economies on taking bread out of the mouths of others", said Burkhard Balz MEP, EPP Group Spokesman in Parliament's Economic Affairs Committee, today.

Balz also welcomed that the new law proposal is based on the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) global standards to reduce tax evasion, which were endorsed by the leaders of the world's largest economies at the G20 summit last November. "EU rules must be in line with international rules to ensure the global competitiveness of European companies", Balz stressed.

States which oppose these rules want to base their economies on taking bread out of the mouths of others.

Burkhard Balz MEP

Balz, who also leads Parliament's biggest political Group in the special tax committee which was set up after the so-called LuxLeaks scandal, wants the new reporting standards on taxes, turnover and employees per country (country by country reporting) to bind big multi-national companies only. "We want to shed light on the tax practices of the very big companies, but no additional bureaucracy for small companies. SMEs and mid-caps are not the originators of the massive tax avoidance plans we have witnessed over the last couple of years", Balz concluded.