Business tax: public debate and future trends

Business taxation is at the heart of the political agenda. The 2014 G20 agenda notes that “in recent years international tax laws have failed to keep pace with changes in the global business environment, particularly with the rapid growth of the global economy, meaning that multinational corporations aren’t necessarily taxed the way they should be”. In the UK and elsewhere in Europe, and the USA, austerity has resulted in a heightened focus on collecting revenues from business and there is an active debate on business taxation in the media, legislatures and from NGOs and the public. The OECD Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Action Plan seeks to address these concerns. At the same time, corporation tax rates are falling worldwide and many governments are seeking to keep their tax systems competitive. Professor Judith Freedman will give a UK and European perspective on the debate and then discuss this, together with the view from Hong Kong and China, with a panel of experts including Professor Richard Cullen, Wilson Chow and Dr Doreen Qiu.