Tax Justice and the Political Economy of Global Capitalism, 1945 to - the Presen

Tax "justice" has become an increasingly central issue of political debate in many countries, particularly following the cardiac arrest of global financial services in 2008 and the subsequent worldwide slump in trade and production. The evident abuse of tax systems by corporations and rich individuals through tax avoidance schemes and offshore shadow banking is increasingly in the public eye. Above all, the political challenges of recovery and structural reform have raised core issues of burden-sharing and social equity on the agendas of both civil society groups and political elites. Democratic states need tax revenue to fund public goods and combat public "bads" with any degree of legitimacy. The contributions to this book discuss the haphazard evolution of contemporary taxation systems, their contradictory effects in a globalized economy, and the urgency of their reform as a precondition for social justice.

List of contents

Introduction: Why Tax Justice Matters in Global Economic Development

Jeremy Leaman & Attiya Waris

Part I: Taxation, Tax Culture and Taxation Reform in European Countries

Chapter 1. Dismantling Slasher Osborne: why Britain needs tax reform, not cuts

George Irvin

Chapter 2. Social and Economic Aspects (or Failures) of Tax Policy in Germany

Dieter Eissel

Chapter 3. Tax Reform, Income Inequality and the Welfare State: The Case of Portugal

Miguel Glatzer

Chapter 4. The Fiscal Lessons of the Global Crisis for the European Union: The Destructive Consequences of Tax Competition

Jeremy Leaman

Part II: Taxation, Taxation Policy and Less Developed Economies

Chapter 5. British Government Attitudes to British Tax Havens: An examination of Whitehall responses to the growth of tax havens in British dependent territories from 1967-75

Paul Sagar, Nick Shaxson, John Christensen

Chapter 6. Tax Treaties between Developed and Developing Countries

Alberto Vega

Chapter 7. Taxation and State Legitimacy in Kenya

Attiya Waris

Chapter 8. The Role of Inter-Company Transfers of Intangible Assets in Tax Avoidance Practices in Nigeria

Olatunde Julius Otusanya

Chapter 9. Gender, Poverty and Taxation: An overview of a multi-country study of gender and taxation

Caren Grown  & Imraan Valodia

PART III: RECATING TAXATION POLICY: PRINCIPLES AND THEIR INTERNATIONAL IMPLICATIONS

Chapter 10. Equity, Efficiency and Progressive Taxation

Paolo Ermano

Chaper 11. Comprehensive lifetime taxation of international citizens: A solution to tax avoidance, tax competition, and tax unfairness

Doug Bamford

Chapter 12. Tax Justice through Country-by-Country Reporting: An Analysis of the Idea's Political Journey

Dries Lesage & Yusuf Kaçar

Chapter 13. International Taxes - Why, What and How?

Margit Schratzenstaller

Bibliography

Notes on Contributors

Index

About the author

Jeremy Leaman is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Politics, History and International Relations at Loughborough University. He is co-editor of Journal of Contemporary European Studies and author of several books, including The Bundesbank Myth (Palgrave, 2001) and The Political Economy of Germany under Chancellors Kohl and Schröder: Decline of the German Model? (Berghahn Books, 2009). He is a member of the Tax Justice Network and the EuroMemo Group.

Attiya Waris is Senior Lecturer in the Commercial Law Department at the University of Nairobi and Vice-Chair of the Tax Justice Network. She is consulting editor of the Nairobi University Law Journal and a co-editor of the Journal of Australian Taxation. She has written numerous articles and reports on issues of taxation and taxation law, with particular reference to developing countries, and is author of Tax and Development: Solving Kenya’s Fiscal Crisis through Human Rights (LawAfrica, 2013) and co-author of Bringing the Billions Back: How Africa and Europe Can End Illicit Capital Flight (with Kristina Fröberg, Forum Syd, 2011).

Summary

Tax “justice” has become an increasingly central issue of political debate in many countries, particularly following the cardiac arrest of global financial services in 2008 and the subsequent worldwide slump in trade and production. The evident abuse of tax systems by corporations and rich individuals through tax avoidance schemes and offshore shadow banking is increasingly in the public eye. Above all, the political challenges of recovery and structural reform have raised core issues of burden-sharing and social equity on the agendas of both civil society groups and political elites. Democratic states need tax revenue to fund public goods and combat public “bads” with any degree of legitimacy. The contributions to this book discuss the haphazard evolution of contemporary taxation systems, their contradictory effects in a globalized economy, and the urgency of their reform as a precondition for social justice.

Additional text

“The selling point of this volume is the sustained focus on tax, justice and a whole variety of topical debates, backed up by detailed and thought-provoking research…. Overall, this is an interesting collection of work that would be an excellent addition to any academic library. It is not the final word on this subject, but the aim seems to have been to open up interdisciplinary debates on matters of the highest possible importance. In this, it has certainly been successful.”  ·  Journal of Contemporary European Studies

“This is an insightful and intensely relevant collection providing a modern interpretation of political economy’s engagement with questions of tax law… What is clearly needed now, more than ever, is an informed review of the existing literature on political economy—and, in particular, of the significant intellectual accomplishments in this area of the great early and mid-twentieth century writers on global, economic justice. This literature is referenced throughout these essays, and this is very much to be welcomed.”  ·  Ann Mumford, Queen Mary, University of London

“This book addresses a topical issue, linking together the question of taxation, justice and development. I am not aware of another book that attempts to covers the topic so comprehensively… The core of the book consists of a good array of strong comparative and theoretical chapters. It is a good book and highly recommended.”  ·  Ronen Palan, University of Birmingham

Product details

• Authors: Jeremy Waris Leaman
• Assisted by: Jeremy Leaman (Editor), Leaman Jeremy (Editor), Attiya Waris (Editor), Waris Attiya (Editor)
• Publisher: BERGHAHN BOOKS, INC
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 01.06.2013
• EAN: 9780857458810
• ISBN: 978-0-85745-881-0
• No. of pages: 360
• Subjects: Social sciences, law, business > Business > Miscellaneous; BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Economic History, POLITICAL SCIENCE / Political Economy, BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Public Finance, Economic history, Political Economy, Public finance and taxation, History: 20th Century to Present