Outrage Over New Euro Tax
by Kirsty Walker

Brussels bureaucrats have drawn up controversial plans to force Britons to pay a "Euro Tax", it emerged last night. The unprecedented move was discussed by European finance ministers as a desperate way of raising cash for the high-spending EU.

It will set alarm bells ringing among the hard-working British families and small businesses already struggling to pay soaring levels of stealth taxes.

The Tories warned that moves towards a Euro Tax were "dangerous" and the first steps towards a European superstate. The plans were put forward by the Dutch, who currently hold the presidency of the EU. But there are fears that any attempts to impose a Euro Tax will fuel fraud and lead to a greater waste of tax payers' money.

Background notes for last night's meeting of EU ministers reveal that new proposals for the "future introduction of a Euro Tax" were considered.

Shadow Europe Minister Graham Brady said the "stitch-up" plans could consist of an energy tax, a VAT levy or a business tax. "These dangerous plans for a Euro Tax show how out of touch people in Brussels have become," he said. "They also show how determined some countries are to turn the EU into a country called Europe." Mr Brady called on ministers to scupper the attempts and warned the Government to listen to a sceptical British public.

He said, "The Government must block them. But while Labour remains signed up to the EU constitution, they will continue to give Brussels more control over our lives. They need to listen to the vast majority of British people, who want to see powers brought back from Brussels to Britain."

The attempt to bring in a Euro Tax is set to put Britain on another collision course with France and Germany, which favour tax harmonization. Both countries have made clear they want to introduce some form of Europe-wide business tax. But Britain has already warned it would veto any such move.

Pressure
Tony Blair has repeatedly insisted he will not allow the EU to interfere with domestic tax issues. The Prime Minister has fought hard to hold onto Britain's veto on tax, so that no system could be imposed on the UK without our backing. But under new rules, a band of at least eight countries, including France and Germany, could go ahead anyway. This has raised fears that Britain may come under intense pressure eventually to surrender its tax veto.

Leading economist, Dr Madsen Pirie, from the Adam Smith Institute, warned Britain to be very wary over the attempts to create a Federal Europe. He said, "This is a warning to us all to be on our guard from this relentless pressure. If we turn our backs for one minute, then this Euro Tax will be brought in." Dr Pirie added: "The people who are professing these things do not understand that Europe is changing. The new European countries do not want a Federal Europe with its own tax-setting powers."

Mathew Elliott, from the Tax-Payers Alliance, said, "Tony Blair has repeatedly promised the British taxpayer that there would not be a European tax. But it now sounds like plans for a Euro Tax are very much on the agenda. The British taxpayer is right to be annoyed and concerned about this latest development. Tony Blair is looking increasingly isolated in Europe. If other countries want to go ahead with plans such as these, they can now do so. It is time for this Government to come clean about what these plans are and what they will cost the British taxpayer."

Chancellor Gordon Brown has described plans for EU tax harmonisation as "fatally flawed" and warned that it would inflict serious damage on British and European economies.

Senior Government sources last night poured scorn on the latest Euro Tax plans.

Opposed
One said, "This is being brought up by people who think the Commission is strapped for cash and want to find a new way of raising money. But it is an idea we have rejected. It is not very popular."

A Treasury spokesman said: "The UK is opposed to a European tax as we believe that tax is a matter for member states to decide at national level."

The EU's financial watchdog has refused to give the annual Euro-accounts the all-clear for the 10th year running. A report today from the European Court of Auditors repeats concerns about the accuracy of the books on the 2003 budget, totalling nearly £70 billion. The auditors acknowledge that the Commission has brought in reforms after complaints of fraud and mismanagement but say they cannot give assurances about the validity of the annual accounts. Tory MEPs' leader, Jonathan Evans said the findings raised questions about accounting reliability within the European Commission.
The Daily Express, 16th November 2004

Further Resources
Ten Minutes to Midnight by Phillip Day
Vigilance by Ashley Mote

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