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EU REGULATORS TODAY said they believe Luxembourg gave illegal tax breaks to Internet shopping giant Amazon, renewing pressure on European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker over arrangements made when he was prime minister.
The European Commission’s preliminary findings into Amazon’s deals with the tiny duchy were the latest in a widening anti-trust probe by Brussels into sweetheart tax deals between major companies and several countries.
They also come months after the “Luxleaks” tax scandal, in which investigative journalists uncovered details of tax breaks for dozens of major firms during Juncker’s 19 years as premier of Luxembourg.
The Commission, the EU’s powerful executive body responsible for policing its internal market rules, was today revealing the formal argument for opening the investigation into Amazon’s 2003 deal with Luxembourg.
The probe looks at whether the tax breaks can be considered illegal state aid, which gives companies an unfair advantage and breaks EU rules designed to protect consumers and competitors.
“The Commission’s preliminary view is that the tax ruling… by Luxembourg in favour of Amazon constitutes state aid,” the Commission said.
It said there was “no indication at this stage that the contested measure can be compatible with the internal market”.
And then there’s Apple and Ireland
The EU has opened similar probes into US tech icon Apple’s deals with Ireland, coffee-shop chain Starbucks with the Netherlands and Italian automaker Fiat, also with Luxembourg.
But Finance Minister Michael Noonan has said the case against Ireland was “weak” and that the country would fight any adverse finding against it through “every legal avenue open”.
He believed Ireland had been unfairly “caught in the crossfire” of sniping between big EU countries and the US on multinationals’ tax avoidance.
Additional reporting Peter Bodkin
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This scampi happening!
That’s a-pall ling.
That must have caused haddock.
the plaice is in bits
Sure they were packed in like sardines
You’re codding me!
An overturned truck of fish has been causing problems on the main Cork-Dublin road, take care if you are approaching the area, and get off your bloddy phoines!!!
Large scale traffic disruption
Create your own fish pun, dont leave it to salmon else
clean up is gonna cost a few squid.
at least there is a ray of hope it will open later
Are sole.
pollocks
Gonna have to avoid the plaice
was that at the turn Pike
A dangerous plaice to crash
i would hake to be travelling that road this morning
A plaice to avoid this morning.
On a SCALE of one to ten how much of a fishy story is this?
It`s a mackerel that no-one was hurt
Your all gillty of terrible fish puns…
Now were fin ished
Don’t panic they say it will be cleared up in a whale
Full “scale” emergency declared.
This story is a red herring.
These fish puns should be funny.
Dont plaice the sole of your foot to hard on the breaks. otherwise you will skate across the road. okay ill get my coat!!!! lol
That driver will have to be schooled on his driving.
Something smells, are they trying to bait us?,
The driver was Whiting a text message, it was an easy mistHake to make, no Trout about it.
Right folks, fin-ish up there now, do yis not have homes to goldfish?
Would ye all stop blubbering on!!?
You don’t have to be a brain sturgeon to come up with a good fish pun but it would dolphinetly kelp.
The fish will………..
Doh!
Monorail!
maybe they made up this story just for the “halibut”.
I read the first 10 fish puns here hoping they would make me laugh but, no pun in 10 did.
Ah don’t be such a stickleback.
Ah Ted. That must make you feel very out of plaice. We are all having a whale of a time too. But we are bound to worm a smile out of you yet and get you off your hook or should we just let you flounder.
All we need now is a few loaves, and we’d have a miracle.
There is something fishy about that crash .
Two hours and not one fanny pun, standards are slipping.
eel get a few points on his licence for that !
They will have to PIKE them by hand onto trucks
If you don’t want the fish dont maul it il have them for tea
I don’t give a dam about water charges. (See what I did there?
Talk to me when someone is organising a protest against property tax or USC.
Looks like it will be the healthiest section of the motorway.
Pollocks.
Eel bet they were worth a few squid.
Salmons head is going to roll for this.
Bleedin Topes…
Chr@@t there’s a load of lads here that would do well ablow in the opera house!!
orca ward situation to be in
wrong time, wrong plaice!
something fishy about that
have your say