BRUSSELS: The European Union launched a probe yesterday to determine whether the special tax deals offered to Apple and Starbucks by authorities in Ireland, Luxembourg and the Netherlands amount to illegal state aid.
“In the current context of tight public budgets, it is particularly important that large multinationals pay their fair share of taxes,” EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said. Apple and Starbucks — as well as a number of other multi-national companies including Amazon and Google — have come under intense pressure from politicians and campaigners over their tax affairs. The tax policies ruling the financial arm of Italian automaker Fiat, based in Luxembourg, is also included in the probe.
The multinationals are accused of enjoying sweetheart tax deals that allow them to move billions in earnings from higher-taxed countries to lower taxed ones. AFP
