DUBLIN: Ireland defended its tax regime yesterday against criticism from US President Barack Obama, insisting that it does not seek to entice US companies to make the country its domicile to lower their tax bills.
Investment from multinationals, whose employees account for some 10 percent of Ireland’s workforce, is a central plank of Irish economic policy and the head of the country’s investment agency has warned that inversions could damage its reputation.
“Ireland has a very robust strategy for attracting foreign companies who invest substantively, put real investment into the ground and provide employment,” enterprise minister Richard Bruton told reporters. “That is very different from what has been discussed in recent days around tax inversions. Ireland does not promote such investments and nor do we want such investments. They actually cost us money and we derive no benefit from them.”
REUTERS
