Liam Twomey (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

In recent years, I have attended meetings of the OECD in Paris on global taxation issues. One can see a lot of finger-pointing over there and we are often at the receiving end. However, the leadership of the OECD makes it quite clear that we are very transparent in regard to how we deal with our taxation matters. Other countries have often been picked by the OECD chairmen when they are pointing the finger at countries like Ireland or the Netherlands.

Their countries are not exactly perfect either. If one looks at some of the stuff that has transpired from these meetings, we are more transparent than even the United Kingdom in some of our taxation matters. Luxembourg is quite hostile regarding how taxation is dealt with. Many of the taxation havens about which we talk - the ones in the Caribbean - are under the protection of the United Kingdom or the USA.

What transpires from all of this is that it will be very difficult to find a unilateral solution from any one country. Unless all countries jump together, it is unlikely that anything significant will happen. That is what seems to be coming out of the BEPS. Unless the G20 and all OECD countries decide to work together, it is unlikely that anything significant will come out of it. On the back of this, what has happened to the McCain recommendations? I gather that the Revenue Commissioners have changed nothing in the couple of years since the recommendations were published. Certainly, Congress has not published any legislation to change it. In fact, some of the difficulties about which we are talking are the result of legislation which Congress passed in the mid-1990s. I refer to the tick-the-box legislation of which Senator McCain was one of the advocates at the time.

When we talk about this issue, there is nothing Ireland can do on its own. I will ask the delegates for their opinions on this, although they may not be able to answer. They are here to discuss taxation issues. The worst accusation that can be made against Ireland is that it is a conduit for money which moves in and out. This has become an international issue as we are really talking about the value of intellectual property. Is that not how much of this has come to a head? Intellectual property is given a value by a holding company in one of the tax havens, which generates the issue. Many countries are recognising these huge amounts of money which are being held in offshore accounts. There was a very deliberate policy by countries. Companies using the retained profits could not only push their own agenda but, in some respects, push that of a nation. This seems to have become an issue only in recent years. Is this due to the huge amounts of money about which we talk in terms of retained profits and because it is so easy to put a value on intellectual property rights that one can make up oneself?