Implementing an EU-wide approach to tax transparency will be a priority challenge for Luxembourg as it takes up the European Union presidency on 1 June, according to the minister of finance.
Speaking at the Association of the Luxembourg Funds Industry (ALFI) London conference, Pierre Gramegna outlined three major pillars that the Luxembourg will try to address in its six-month period as EU president.
He welcomed the proposal of shared disclosure of tax information in automatic exchange, saying: “Luxembourg has welcomed that proposal and as chairman I will do my utmost to make sure we can agree on that directive before the end of the year.”
Gramegna emphasised that “this is an international issue”, and said the current model “has allowed companies to really minimise their taxation”.
“If we want to have more tax transparency in Europe and in the world, we have to do it all together,” he said.
“We want to find the right balance. We will always be an aggregate for fiscal competition, which ensures that taxation is not through the roof, but on the other hand we must make sure that big companies pay their fair share of the taxes.”
Other issues that Gramegna intends to tackle include financial services and the capital markets union and banking regulation.
