“The shift from national contributions towards direct taxation to fund the EU budget is a small but important step towards a more democratic direction of the Union”, says Philippe Adriaenssens, President of the Young European Federalists (JEF-Europe).
The draft multiannual financial framework 2014-2020, unveiled by the European Commission includes an important shift from national contributions to a model based on taxation of consumption and financial transactions. JEF-Europe urges the European Parliament and the European Council to support the funding model based on indirect taxes as proposed by the European Commission and supports all efforts launched to standardise income and corporate tax bases. In the medium run, direct EU taxes should completely phase out contributions by Member States.
“Citizens would finally know how much European policies cost them” explains Till Burckhardt, Treasurer of JEF-Europe. “If the EU works efficiently it will be able to cut taxes or deliver better services to citizens. If it is not the case, citizens may choose another leadership in the European elections. That’s democracy.”
“The tragic-comic discussions between Member States on the sovereign debt bailouts and the EU budget show the limits of a governance system based on intergovernmental horse-trading.” continues Burckhardt. “National leaders are defending strictly national interests. They are straw men, who shy away investors from Greece and the rest of Europe. We need to restore confidence by re-establishing responsibilities and democratic control.”
“Of course”, concludes Adriaenssens, “European taxes are not sufficient to break all deadlocks. The European institutions also need reforms, first and foremost an EU-wide Constituency, allowing Europeans to select their leadership on transnational lists.”
[ENDS]
Follow the comments:
|
