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TECHNOLOGY GIANT GOOGLE is to pay £130 million (€172 million) in back taxes to Britain following a government inquiry into its tax arrangements, a company spokeswoman has said.
It follows a six-year probe by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs in response to controversy over low taxes paid by multinational corporations which operate in Britain but have headquarters elsewhere.
“We have agreed with HMRC a new approach for our UK taxes and will pay £130 million, covering taxes since 2005,” a Google spokeswoman said.
The way multinational companies are taxed has been debated for many years and the international tax system is changing as a result. This settlement reflects that shift.
In future, Google will pay taxes in Britain according to revenue from advertisers based in Britain, something that “reflects the size and scope of our UK business”, the spokeswoman said.
The BBC reported that Google would now register a greater proportion of its sales activity in Britain rather than Ireland, where its European headquarters is based and which has a lower rate of corporation tax.
An HMRC spokesman welcomed the agreement.
“The successful conclusion of HMRC inquiries has secured a substantial result, which means that Google will pay the full tax due in law on profits that belong in the UK,” the spokesman said.
Multinational companies must pay the tax that is due and we do not accept less.
Finance minister claims victory
Britain’s finance minister George Osborne has vowed to close tax loopholes and introduce a so-called “Google tax” – the diverted profits tax – to stop firms moving profits abroad.
The opposition Labour Party’s finance spokesman John McDonnell said Google’s deal was “derisory”.
“This is relatively trivial in comparison with what should have been paid,” he told BBC radio.
Meg Hillier, who chairs parliament’s public accounts scrutiny committee, said international companies had been “running rings around tax officials”.
She said HMRC was “effectively admitting it pulled in too little tax from Google for 9 out of 10 years”.
Google is among several top technology firms under pressure over complex tax arrangements.
Apple agreed to pay Italy €318 million to settle a tax dispute last month, and in November world leaders of the Group of 20 top economies vowed to clamp down on schemes by multinationals to minimise tax.
The plan would force multinationals to pay tax in the country where their main business activity is based.
The OECD group of rich nations has estimated that national governments lose €90 – €210 billion, or 4 to 10% of global tax revenues, every year due to the tax-minimising schemes of multinationals.
When stuff like this happens you just hope the likes of Hourigan find the principles they appeared to have before the government formation and bring the whole thing down. We need a competent and transparent government and it’s clear the current is neither.
@Keith O’Reilly: but who would you suggest as their replacement. We’re not spoiled for choice.
@Keith O’Reilly: principles? she was in the negotiations for the programme for government. when that concluded she decided she didn’t like the deal she had developed and agreed so she threatened a split in the greens and voted against government.
Once again Neasa Hourigan is one of the few TD’s in government with even a grain of principles.
It’s so disheartening to see Eamonn Ryan and Catherine Martin once again directly contradicting pre-election, beyond a joke how unrecognisable their actions are compared to their promises.
What’s sad is we need a Green Party in this country at this time and they’re now polling at 2% and facing being wiped out again and another decade to rebuild support thanks to the absolute frauds and sellouts in Ryan and Martin.
Surely a heave has to come from the other members if they intend to have any future in politics after this election and I hope they don’t wait until it’s too late like the Greens in 2011. Otherwise we’re heading into a climate catastrophe without Green representatives.
@Rochelle: At least spectacular half wit Ryan did something, he single handedly destroyed the green charlatans in a couple of years. Well done lad.
@Rochelle: they don’t care about any body but themselfs trough munchers the lot of them . .can’t believe the people fell for the save the planet bit again from them I did the first time .
@Rochelle: once Eamonn and Catherine are allowed to keep jacking up diesel and petrol they have no objection to anything else that happens in government
The opposition have had their political football confiscated and they’re not happy! A great day, let’s get on and build the thing now as quickly as possible, enough time has been lost for women and infant patients already.
@Eoin Roche: let’s not build in haste. Something this big being rushed through will not end well.
@Eoin Roche: You realise Neasa Hourigan is a government TD, right?
@Keith O’Reilly: Boom
@Keith O’Reilly: I remain to be convinced of that! But no, I’m actually talking about Murphy and Shortall, quoted there in the article, as you well know.
@Dave Barrett: Quite right Dave, it’s only been on the drawing board for 9 years so far, not nearly enough! And Holles Street is only 140 years old, I’m sure it can soldier on for another decade or two with 6 or 8 new mothers to a ward and a bathroom. Perfect for dignity and infection control, I’m sure you’ll agree. Not to mention Mothers who have lost babies recovering alongside newly delivered infants and their happy families. That must be awesome. How long more would you care to wait before its not considered to have been rushed? 5 years? 15?
@Eoin Roche: as it stands the building won’t be ready for ten years
@Eoin Roche: You said it yourself, it’s been almost a decade in some form of planning and the best they can come up with is a 3 century lease for some nominal fee (why even have a fee of a tenner?). This needs to be built, no question, and it’ll be built under these Lampoon terms because it’s simply taken too long to get it this far amd it’s too late to go turn back. People expect and deserve infinitely better long-term capital planning from those running the country. People are right to question decisions like this since it’s embarassingly obvious that this and previous governments have form when it comes to making monumental f#ck ups with taxpayer money.
@Eoin Roche: Billions of taxpayers money being spent on land owned by a private company with dubious connections to an organisation that at best is corrupt. The mantra of separating Church and State has now been copper fastened for the next 300 years.
@Donal Desmond: with dubious connections with an organisation that is at best corrupt and yet you want SF to be our government?
Get the thing built, we ll still be here in 300 years time if we need to bring every headbanger along the journey!
I was in Holles st recently and speaking to the staff it was very apparent there was big support for moving.
Fair play to the government for kicking on, I for 1 am with them in this one
Opposition are playing with people lives by wanting to delay the NMH. Shame on them
@Patrick O Connell: How? Who has died because of the care they’ve received in Holles Street? Nah, call me cynical but methinks this is just your Fianna Fáil roots showing Patrick,anything to try to lambast the opposition eh?
@Patrick O Connell: Also, Neasa Hourigan is a member of a government party, so not the opposition.
@FiannaFáilness FineGaelness: do you even know why you are objecting?? You must be still taking orders from Belfast
@FiannaFáilness FineGaelness: if the vast majority of the doctors and medical stafff want this to happen than anyone who opposed this is just trying to point score. 300 years lease is ownership and we don’t waste. 400 million on purchasing the site. Government bashing at the expense of the health of the women and children. Nothing new from SF and their mob
Prediction: Once they start building the hospital the ownership question will NEVER be mentioned again. You heard it here first
It’s all meaningless if the government does not oppose the motion.
Really Nessa Hourigan Green T.D should follow her convictions and resign from the Green Party. She is a very able individual but may find it difficult to get reelected in Dublin Central as a Independent considering SF, FG & Soc Dems hold a seat with the Greens. But she is clearly unhappy, about being in Gov with FG & FF.
Sinn Féin in NI is centrist, SF in the the republic is leftist. What the hell are you? As someone who wants to support leftist parties I struggle to support Sinn Féin.
@Pete Gilmartin: So support PBP?
@Pete Gilmartin: You misspelled ‘populist’ I think.
I’ve made a note in my diary to ensure that when this lease expires that the equivalent of what we paid in rents is reimbursed to the State.
Just shows what a waste of time it is being in opposition in our system – Mary Harney was right.
Are the various government Ministers signing off on this afraid of going to hell if they stand up for the people against the Church. That or there are a lot of backhanders involved. Another disaster waiting to happen.
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