POLITICIANS

Lobby e-mail against EU tax sent to Members of Parliament in Sweden

On the 23rd of May 2011, we sent an email to 329 members of the Swedish National Parliament (Riksdagen). The email was more or less the same as the standard email text that can be found on this No EU Tax website.
 
In total, eight members of parliament responded back to us, all with positive reactions to our campaign.
 
One Moderate member, Karl Sigfrid, asked for additional material and wanted to link this information to his website.
 
Four members from the Moderates, Jan Ericson, Henrik Ripa, Elisabeth Svantesson, and Susanna Haby also replied, clearly stating that they share our views regarding EU taxation.
 
One Social Democratic member, Eva Adolfsson Elgestam, wrote in her response, “We Social Democrats oppose every time the issue about a common tax within different sectors and asserts that this is a national issue”.
 
An exceptionally good answer indeed. We hope that she will get her way against the Swedish Social Democratic Member of the European Parliament, who happens to be a fanatic EU tax supporter.
 
Jonas Sjöstedt from the Swedish Left Party informed us that he is totally unanimous with our campaign.
 
From the Environmental Party the Greens, Helena Leander answered. She wrote a long and well thought-out reply. She writes that she can support some supranationality, as in the case of climate issues. For example, a CO2 tax with a minimum rate can be something the EU should decide on. However, this tax income should be given to the member states, not the European Union.
 
We thank the above MPs for their positive replies. We urge everyone in other member states to email their MPs on the EU tax issue. Show that resistance exists against the introduction of a direct EU taxation.
    

Politicians and the EU tax: Where they stand

download politicians_and_the_EU_tax-where_they_stand.pdf |

Quotes against an EU tax

“I am against the introduction of an EU tax”
Germany’s Bundeskansler Angela Merkel at a press conference in Brussels on Tuesday November 2, 2010. Report from various News agencies.

“Right now I try to think of something more unpopular than a new European tax”.
British Prime Minister David Cameron at a press conference in London Thursday November 25, 2010.Quoted by Swedish Radio News.

“We do not need more taxes, but less … Europe must try to manage with those resources that exist, and that already are very generous”.
British Prime Minister David Cameron at a press conference in London Thursday 25th of November 2010.Quoted by Swedish News Agencies.

“The right to tax – or to govern with own resources – will lead to increased costs and increased taxation. It comes into conflict with the individual willingness to put people to work and the clarity that working pays”.
Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt at a press conference in London Thursday 25th of November 2010 (together with David Cameron). Quoted by Swedish Radio News.

“We do not like the idea of a special EU tax. It would only increase taxes and, we fear, goes in the opposite direction of development in Sweden. We try to head in a different direction, so we are very doubtful of the creation of own resources for the EU”.
Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt at a press conference in London Thursday 25th of November 2010 (together with David Cameron). Quoted by Swedish News Agencies.

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Quotes in favour of an EU tax

“This year's budget debate again underlines the need to agree on a meaningful system of own resources for the EU. The annual squabbling over the budgets between the European institutions leads to chaotic decision-making and creates an acrimonious diversion, which could be so easily avoided through an own resources system, such as allocating part of the revenue from an EU financial transaction tax, a tax on aviation fuel or a carbon tax to fund the EU budget. Despite this, today's vote broadly strikes a balance between responding to the extra demands created by the Lisbon Treaty, whilst limiting the growth in the EU budgets, in response to current budgetary difficulties”.
RaülRomeva i Rueda (Spanish Initiative for Catalonia Greens, Verts/ALE), Member of the European Parliament in an explanation of vote October 20, 2010 in the European Parliament.

(Our comment: The “squabbling” Romeva i Rueda refers to is merely the reluctance of member states to fund the MEPs' yearly wish list of expenses.)

“ALDE welcomes the initiatives made by the European commission to investigate possibilities for new own resources. In the long term, the increase of existing own resources and/or the introduction of new own resources should aim at replacing the national contributions to the EU budget altogether”.
-ALDE Group in European Parliament: “ALDE position paper on EU budget post 2013”.
(Our comment: This illustrates the typical rhetoric that is used to avoid the word “tax”. By “replacing the national contributions to the EU budget altogether”, the EU will be made independent: able to increase expenses at will by raising the EU tax.)

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Members of the European Parliament in favour or against an EU tax - March 2007

On March 29, 2007 the European Parliament voted on the Lamassoure report, which discussed the future of the European Union's own resources (A6-0066/2007). The report was seen as an important step in convincing member states of the necessity of direct income for the EU. Point 29 from the report states:
“Considers that, as stated in the Treaties and in the draft Constitution, fiscal sovereignty will remain with the Member States who might, however, authorise the Union, for a limited period to be revoked at any time, to benefit directly from a certain share of a tax as is the case in most Member States with regional or local authorities;”

The following MEPs voted in favour of an EU tax when they voted in favour of point 29 in the Lamassoure report:
Download XLS File

The following MEPs voted against an EU tax when they voted against point 29 in the Lamassoure report:
Download XLS File

The following MEPs were present at the vote but abstained
Download XLS File

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List of Members of the European Parliament in favour or against an EU tax - May 2009

On May 7, 2009 the drafted Lisbon treaty was up for debate, and with it the “own resources” of European Union incomes. Part of the debate included a report on the financial aspects of the Lisbon Treaty (A6-0183/2009) by rapporteur Catherine Guy-Quint, French socialist. The report was an own initiative: presenting only a political position and not an issue for legislation. Point 2 of the report stated:

“Criticises the fact that, as regards the Union's own resources, the Member States have failed to take the opportunity to establish a system of genuine own resources which is fairer, more transparent, more readily understandable to the public and subject to a more democratic decision-making procedure;”

Only a roll call vote regarding the report as a whole was taken, but the principle of an EU tax must be considered one of the fundamentals of the report.

The report was approved: 442 in favour, 86 against, and 15 abstentions. 193 members were absent from the vote.

The vast majority of the members in the European Parliament have a federalist view of EU development. In their view, obtaining independent incomes for the European Union is a decisive step towards creating the United States of Europe.

Only three explanations of vote were given after the vote on the Guy-Quint report.

The five Swedish Moderates (PPE-DE ) voted in favour of the report but attempted to excuse themselves in a May 2009 explanation of vote:

“We have voted in favour of the report on the financial aspects of the Treaty of Lisbon, which deals with the form the budget procedure will take if the Treaty of Lisbon enters into force.

We do not support the parts of the report that deal with the EU having its own resources through power of taxation. We also oppose the establishment of flexibility mechanisms”.
Unfortunately, these Swedish Moderates did not dare to go against the Guy-Quint report, even though it included the demand for an EU tax.

Two other MEPs - Martin Callanan (British Conservative) and Nils Lundgren (Swedish EU-critical June List) - sent in written explanations of votes that went against the Guy-Quint report as a whole.

The following MEPs voted in favour of an EU tax when they voted in favour of the Guy-Quint report:
Download XLS File

The following MEPs voted against an EU tax when they voted against the Guy-Quint report:
Download XLS File

The following MEPs were present at the vote but abstained
Download XLS File

    
    
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