The European Commission’s inquiry into whether Ireland granted illegal state aid to Apple by granting the company favorable tax rulings could turn into a long-running court battle, said Finance Minister Michael Noonan on July 3.
“We will provide a detailed, technical, legal rebuttal to the Commission’s position and, if necessary, defend our position in the European courts,” said Noonan, in comments before the Dáil. He added that if the matter goes to court, it could remain unresolved for three to five years.
Responding to questioning by Fianna Fáil’s Dara Calleary, Noonan said that Ireland must protect its reputation abroad. Ireland’s tax system has been subject to “disparaging and uninformed remarks” by U.S. politicians and “ill-founded comments” by the international media, he said. He also maintained that Ireland’s tax system is consistent with OECD tax rules.
Calleary worried that a long, drawn-out, state aid dispute would hamper Ireland’s ability to attract foreign investment. “International investment companies will seek to attract investment into their countries while undermining our ability to do that as long as this is going on,” said Calleary.
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