Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Did the Taoiseach discuss the issue of multinational tax evasion with the Belgian Prime Minister? I say that because it was reported late last year that $221 billion worth of profits were shifted offshore from Belgium to tax havens around the world, which is obviously a matter of very serious concern to the tax authorities. That equates to about half of Belgium's GDP. We might be discussing it with Belgium this week as yet more evidence has been uncovered showing Ireland's role in the international network of tax havens. US and Danish economists have pointed out that more profits are shifted to Ireland because our tax code is riddled with loopholes than to all the tax havens in the Caribbean combined. This is further evidence that Ireland is a tax haven and is part of an international architecture of tax avoidance and tax evasion which is costing tax authorities around the world about €200 billion annually, which is absolutely starving tax authorities of revenue needed for vital public services.

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