EU state of the union address calls for tax reforms

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stressed the importance of fair taxation and initiatives to expand the tax base in her 2021 state of the union address on September 15.

To that end, she emphasized that “we will do everything in our power to seal the historic deal on minimum taxation.” This is despite current opposition to the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework agreement by three EU member states: Estonia, Hungary, and Ireland.

She also noted that the EU will be establishing new initiatives to tackle shell companies. The Commission launched a consultation on the issue in May.

Von der Leyen further mentioned as a priority cracking down on tax avoidance and evasion.

“Asking big companies to pay the right amount of tax is not only a question of public finances,” she said, “but above all a question of basic fairness.”