“It is fascinating to watch left wing ideologues and simpleminded idiots (though I repeat myself) gleefully call for the Irish nation to douse itself in petrol and light a match where corporate taxation is concerned,” Aaron McKenna writes for TheJournal.ie. “‘It is simply unfair,’ they will shout time and again, ‘that these big corporations use our little country to reduce their tax liabilities when the ordinary Irish worker is struggling with water/property/income/taxes in general.'”
“As in all aspects of life, these folks seem to believe that someone else owes them a living,” McKenna writes. “Just as those who are more successful than them should be paying 90% income tax rates according to the manifestos of many of our left wing parties, the corporations present in Ireland should be forking over far more of the global profits they wash through Ireland because, well, they have the money the lefties want.”
“Sorry, because fairness. What they seem to miss is causation. Yes, there are a multitude of corporations sitting in Ireland, employing hundreds of thousands directly and indirectly, but only having a small portion of their profits pass through as taxable in this state,” McKenna writes. “That, in a nutshell, is why they are in Ireland. It’s not the only reason, but it is the seed, the germ, the zygote brought together by tax planning and our position in the world.”
“The next time you hear that the Irish state is prepared to fight the EU Commission over purported tax deal investigations, don’t roll your eyes. The Irish state isn’t fighting for corporate profits, it’s fighting for the jobs that we have in this country thanks to our corporate tax regime,” McKenna writes. “The Eurocrats and the left and the begrudgers can think again – tax competitiveness is the foundation stone that built Irish prosperity and that will drag us out of the mess we’ve been in the past years.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple has repeatedly and confidently stated that they didn’t do anything that was against the law. Therefore, unless the EC tries to change the law retroactively, if that’s even possible, or tries to collect taxes retroactively in some other fashion, Apple is in the clear.
There was no special deal that we cut with Ireland. We simply followed the laws in the country over the 35 years that we have been in Ireland. If the question is, was there ever a ‘quid pro quo’ that we were trying to strike with the Irish government – that was never the case. We’ve always been very transparent with the Irish government that we wanted to be a good corporate citizen… If countries change the tax laws, we will abide by the new laws and we will pay taxes according to those laws. – Apple CFO Luca Maestri
SEE ALSO:
Apple announces 1,000 new jobs in Ireland as EU tax ruling nears – November 11, 2015
Apple tax probe won’t hurt Ireland, Finance Minister Noonan says – October 5, 2015
EU’s Vestager says will not complete tax inquiries of Apple, others in second quarter – May 5, 2015
Apple warns of potential ‘material’ financial damage from European tax probe – April 29, 2015
Apple may have to pay Ireland 10 years of back taxes – April 30, 2015
Ireland’s Prime Minister: Apple has nothing to fear from end of ‘Double Irish’ tax avoidance strategy – November 4, 2014
Apple says it may lose Irish tax break – October 31, 2014
Ireland to end tax lures that drew U.S. firms – October 14, 2014
EU tax probe spotlights Ireland’s allure for multinationals – October 13, 2014
EU watchdog to give reasons for inquiry into Ireland’s tax treatment of Apple – September 29, 2014
European Commission accuses Apple of prospering from illegal Irish tax deals – September 28, 2014
EU threatens expanded probe into Ireland’s tax practices regarding Apple, Googles, other companies – June 20, 2014
EU’s investigation of Apple’s taxes isn’t going to cause the company any problems – June 13, 2014
EU launches tax avoidance investigations on Apple, Starbucks, Fiat – June 11, 2014
Not in Taxes anymore: On site at Apple’s famous Irish ‘headquarters’ – November 2, 2013
Regan: U.S. tax code spurs loveless foreign corporate ‘marriages’ – May 13, 2014
Ireland to close Apple’s tax loophole, but leave bigger one open – October 15, 2013
G20 think tank OECD proposes blueprint for global crackdown on tax avoidance – July 19, 2013
Thomas Sowell on Apple, corporate taxes, and ‘the road to serfdom’ – May 28, 2013
Taxing Apple just taxes you – May 24, 2013
Don’t tax Apple, tax its shareholders – May 24, 2013
If Apple paid more tax, we might pay less or something – May 22, 2013
Apple CEO Tim Cook pounds another nail into the Keynesian coffin – May 22, 2013
Apple CEO Cook makes no apology for company’s tax strategy – May 22, 2013
[Thanks to MacDailyNews readers too numerous to mention individually for the heads up.]