148 episodes

The Taxcast is a monthly podcast/radio show from the Tax Justice Network with the latest from the world of tax havens, financial secrecy and tax abuse. We explore these most challenging ethical and economic issues of our times with transformational economic analysis you won’t hear anywhere else.

Available on most podcast apps: https://pod.link/620020246
Website: https://podcasts.taxjustice.net/production/taxcast/
Subscribe by email: naomi [at] taxjustice.net

The Taxcast Tax Justice Network

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    • 4.4 • 17 Ratings

The Taxcast is a monthly podcast/radio show from the Tax Justice Network with the latest from the world of tax havens, financial secrecy and tax abuse. We explore these most challenging ethical and economic issues of our times with transformational economic analysis you won’t hear anywhere else.

Available on most podcast apps: https://pod.link/620020246
Website: https://podcasts.taxjustice.net/production/taxcast/
Subscribe by email: naomi [at] taxjustice.net

    Crime DOES pay...?

    Crime DOES pay...?

    Crime doesn't pay - or does it?! Taxcast host Naomi Fowler talks to former police investigator, asset recovery specialist and co-author of The War on Dirty Money Tristram Hicks about the state of criminal asset recovery: "We haven't started the war on dirty money. There's this disconnect that's taking place at a strategic level."
    PLUS: The Tax Justice Network's Alex Cobham analyses Australia's much awaited, revised (aka watered down) legislation to tackle multinational tax abuse - disappointing but still significant. AND: a model wealth tax law has been agreed by consensus at the United Nations. We expected the OECD to try to block it but they didn't - why?
    A transcript of the show is available here: (some is automated)
    https://taxjustice.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Taxcast-March-2024-Transcript.pdf 
    Further reading:
    The War on Dirty Money, by Tristram Hicks and Nicholas Gilmour
    Dirty Money: Tristram Hicks on Substack
    UN agrees plan for wealth tax law blueprint https://taxjustice.net/press/un-agrees-plan-for-wealth-tax-law-blueprint/ 
    The Tax Justice Network hails a breakthrough in corporate tax transparency https://taxjustice.net/press/tax-justice-network-hails-a-major-breakthrough-in-corporate-tax-transparency/
    The country by country reporting path to global justice https://taxjustice.net/events/the-country-by-country-path-to-global-justice/ 
    The FT confirms the OECD lobbied against Australian tax transparency
    https://taxjustice.net/press/ft-confirms-oecd-lobbied-against-australian-tax-transparency/ 
    The investor case for public country by country tax reporting https://thefactcoalition.org/report/a-material-concern-the-investor-case-for-public-country-by-country-tax-reporting/ 
    Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 https://www.ukciu.gov.uk/(xwxqxm55yk5tzxbr0dznv2en)/Information/info.aspx?InfoSection=Legislation 
    HMRC/UK tax authority staff paying for themselves many times over https://www.taxjustice.uk/tax-takes-6.html 
    Our website with all our podcasts is https://podcasts.taxjustice.net/  
     
     

    • 45 min
    Taxing multinationals, unitary-style

    Taxing multinationals, unitary-style

    While we wait for a global tax body at the United Nations, what are the ways forward for nations desperate to tax multinationals fairly? We talk unitary taxation in a special extended interview with Emeritus Law Professor, coordinator of the BEPS Monitoring Group and Tax Justice Network special advisor Sol Picciotto.
    Plus: the return of our analysis slot - Taxcast host Naomi Fowler talks to Zorka Milin of the FACT Coalition about the US's new beneficial ownership registry and its shortcomings; and a tale of two crimes: the punishment of a whistleblower versus a magic circle lawyer in a $6000 suit.
    Transcript available here: https://podcasts.taxjustice.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Feb-2024-Taxcast-Transcript.pdf 
    Guests:
    Alison Shultz, Tax Justice Network Zorka Milin, FACT Coalition Sol Picciotto, veteran tax justice champion, emeritus professor of law, coordinator of the BEPS Monitoring Group which analyzes efforts to tackle profit shifting by multinationals, and Tax Justice Network senior advisor Produced and presented by Naomi Fowler of the Tax Justice Network. Further reading:
    Beneficial Ownership Reporting Begins Under Corporate Transparency Act: https://thefactcoalition.org/u-s-beneficial-ownership-reporting-begins-groundbreaking-anti-bribery-bill-signed-into-law-just-the-facts-1-8-24/
    Roadmap to Effective Beneficial Ownership Transparency (Tax Justice Network) https://taxjustice.net/2023/02/07/roadmap-to-effective-beneficial-ownership-transparency-rebot/ 
    Charles Littlejohn pleads guilty to one count of disclosing tax return information https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-68131435
    The Secret IRS Files: Trove of Never-Before-Seen Records Reveal How the Wealthiest Avoid Income Tax (ProPublica) https://www.propublica.org/article/the-secret-irs-files-trove-of-never-before-seen-records-reveal-how-the-wealthiest-avoid-income-tax
    Former Freshfields partner sentenced to jail for German tax fraud https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/ex-freshfields-partner-gets-35-year-sentence-german-tax-fraud-2024-01-30/
    Ex-Freshfields lawyer convicted over tax fraud received €2mn severance pay (FT paywall) https://www.ft.com/content/28fc06cb-b9db-4af4-a854-297c3ba5b4e4
    Beyond the Two Pillar Proposals. A Simplified Approach for Taxing Multinationals https://www.southcentre.int/tax-cooperation-policy-brief-no-36-26-october-2023/ 
    BEPS Monitoring Group: https://www.bepsmonitoringgroup.org/ 
    Our website with further information and more podcasts: https://podcasts.taxjustice.net/ 
     

    • 1 hr 3 min
    #139 People Power

    #139 People Power

    On the Taxcast this month: People power for tax justice is on the rise like never before. We kick off 2024 with inspiring stories on campaigns for tax reform from around the world: strategies, successes, limitations, and what we can learn from the first in-depth studies of their kind by International Budget Partnership.

    Plus: Malawian poet and Senior Tax Investigations Officer Robert Chiwamba pays tribute to tax collectors everywhere. You can watch him perform We Will Count Them here.

    Transcript of the show: https://taxjustice.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Taxcast_transcript_Jan_2024.pdf (Some is automated)

    Guests:

    Robert Chiwamba, Malawian poet and Senior Tax Investigations Officer (his youtube site is here, WATCH him performing his poem We Will Count Them https://youtu.be/V95_Yd8Dfhs )
    Greg Leroy of Good Jobs First
    Paolo de Renzio, formerly Senior Research Fellow with the International Budget Partnership, now Senior Lecturer at the Brazilian School of Public and Business Administration of Fundação Getúlio Vargas in Rio de Janeiro.
    Produced and presented by Naomi Fowler of the Tax Justice Network.
    Further reading:
    A Taxing Journey: How Civic Actors Influence Tax Policy (open access – free pdf from International Budget Partnership https://www.bloomsburycollections.com/monograph?docid=b-9781350344648 and a summary paper on that work here: https://internationalbudget.org/publications/a-taxing-journey-how-civic-actors-influence-tax-policy/ 
    Beneficial Ownership reporting begins in the US: https://thefactcoalition.org/u-s-beneficial-ownership-reporting-begins-groundbreaking-anti-bribery-bill-signed-into-law-just-the-facts-1-8-24/
    Proud to Pay More: 260+ millionaires and billionaires from 17 countries ask governments to tax them more https://proudtopaymore.org/
    The EU Court ruling on Beneficial Ownership registries in 2022 https://taxjustice.net/press/eu-court-returns-eu-to-dark-ages-of-dirty-money/
    A Tax Justice Network report on how to fix beneficial ownership frameworks https://taxjustice.net/2023/12/20/new-report-on-how-to-fix-beneficial-ownership-frameworks-so-they-actually-work/

    • 39 min
    Introducing The Corruption Diaries

    Introducing The Corruption Diaries

    In this brand new Tax Justice Network weekly podcast we take listeners on a journey through the eyes of anti-corruption veterans who were on the frontline of events that have defined our world today, with stories and perspectives on reform you won't hear anywhere else.
    In Series 1 we sit down with leading white collar crime lawyer and senior Tax Justice Network adviser Jack Blum who tells us about his life's work during a period of huge geopolitical change and transformed global tax and financial systems. From the BCCI scandal, to Panamanian dictator Noriega’s cocaine trafficking, to Lockheed Aircraft’s overseas bribes - Jack was there.
    Every Wednesday we'll release a new episode. Don't miss it! Subscribe on your podcast app: https://pod.link/1721797109 
    The Corruption Diaries is produced by Naomi Fowler and Jo Barratt of the Tax Justice Network. Interviews with Jack Blum were recorded over several days at Jack’s home in Maryland by journalist Zoe Sullivan.

    • 2 min
    #138 Overturning a 100 year legacy: the UN tax vote

    #138 Overturning a 100 year legacy: the UN tax vote

    In an extended Taxcast edition this month, a century of tax rule setting by the former imperial powers has been overturned: we look at the UN vote on global tax reform. Taxcast host Naomi Fowler follows events at the UN, the failed efforts to block it and explores what it all means with Alex Cobham of the Tax Justice Network.

    Featuring:

    Alex Cobham of the Tax Justice Network
    UN representatives from Nigeria, South Africa, the Bahamas, the UK, the US, Spain, Russian Federation, Cameroon.
    Hosted by Naomi Fowler of the Tax Justice Network, produced by Naomi Fowler and Jo Barratt.
    Transcript available here: https://taxjustice.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/TRANSCRIPT_Taxcast_Dec_23.pdf
    "If the time of crisis imposes the time of change, then it's time for cooperation to take precedence over competition. It's time for international solidarity to take precedence over particular and selfish interest in the short term. African people are tired of numbers about assistance for development. They do not request more assistance. They request every partner running business, the physical or digital, individuals and companies making profit should pay the right price, the fair and just percentage in terms of tax. Then we could keep our promise to transforming our world, to ensuring the world we want, the future we want is a reality."
    ~ UN Representative from Cameroon
    "It's a century waiting to have a globally inclusive body to set tax rules to throw over the decisions made by the League of Nations in the 1920s and 30s that we're all stuck with the consequences of today. We don't actually need tax rules that were set by the imperial powers, honestly, we can do better."
    ~ Alex Cobham, Tax Justice Network


    Further reading:

    The UN adopts plans for historic tax reform, Tax Justice Network
    “No” voters on UN tax reform enable 75% of global tax abuse, Tax Justice Network
    Follow developments on tax reform at the UN on the Tax Justice Network's live blog: Road to UN vote on global tax reform
    Decolonising the International Tax System from Fadhel Kaboub's blog
    A new UN Tax convention – how will it change global tax governance? From Martin Hearson
    You can WATCH the vote at the UN here (the discussion on tax matters starts around 35 minutes)
    More Taxcasts on https://www.thetaxcast.com 

    • 56 min
    The People vs Microsoft

    The People vs Microsoft

    On the Taxcast this month, the story of what happened when the US tax authorities, the IRS, decided to crack down on Microsoft, one of the world's biggest tech companies. Worthy of a thriller movie with its twists and turns, there are many lessons for governments worldwide. And it's not over yet.
    Featuring:
    Zorka Milin of the Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Coalition Paul Kiel of ProPublica Samantha Jacoby of the Centre on Budget and Policy Priorities Andrew Leigh, MP and Australian Treasury Alex Cobham of the Tax Justice Network Hosted and produced by Naomi Fowler of the Tax Justice Network Transcript (some is automated) https://taxjustice.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Transcript_Taxcast_Nov_23.pdf 
    Further reading:
    How a slick accounting maneuver led to a $29 billion tax bill for Microsoft https://fortune.com/2023/10/13/microsoft-back-taxes-irs-29-billion-propublica/ 
    The IRS Decided to Get Tough Against Microsoft. Microsoft Got Tougher https://www.propublica.org/article/the-irs-decided-to-get-tough-against-microsoft-microsoft-got-tougher
    What the Microsoft Tax Case Shows Us About Tax Transparency https://thefactcoalition.org/what-the-microsoft-tax-case-shows-us-about-tax-transparency/#:~:text=They%20had%20negotiated%20a%2015,Puerto%20Rico%20and%20the%20US.
    FT confirms OECD lobbied against Australian tax transparency https://taxjustice.net/press/ft-confirms-oecd-lobbied-against-australian-tax-transparency/#:~:text=The%20law%20requires%20multinationals%20operating,tool%20for%20accountability%20and%20deterrence.
    Microsoft, Cisco Shareholder Votes Demonstrate Increasing Investor Demand for Tax and Offshore Transparency https://thefactcoalition.org/microsoft-cisco-shareholder-votes-demonstrate-increasing-investor-demand-for-tax-and-offshore-transparency/ 
    KPMG's pitch to Microsoft: 'Planning Alternatives in Puerto Rico' https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6556275-KPMG-2004-Pitch-to-Microsoft.html  and Microsoft 2003 Memo on Puerto Rico Factory https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6556274-Microsoft-2003-Memo-on-Puerto-Rico-Factory.html
    Bipartisan Senate Action Passes Minimal Test for IRS Funding While Multiple House Republican Bills Fail https://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-budget/bipartisan-senate-action-passes-minimal-test-for-irs-funding-while-multiple 
    Revenue From BBB’s IRS Enforcement Funding Would Support Investments https://www.cbpp.org/blog/revenue-from-bbbs-irs-enforcement-funding-would-support-investments
    UN adopts plans for historic tax reform https://taxjustice.net/press/un-adopts-plans-for-historic-tax-reform/
    “No” voters on UN tax reform enable 75% of global tax abuse https://taxjustice.net/press/no-voters-on-un-tax-reform-enable-75-of-global-tax-abuse/ 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

    • 38 min

Customer Reviews

4.4 out of 5
17 Ratings

17 Ratings

someguyinPinole ,

Consistently brilliant insights into the dark side of global capitalism

What do Google, Apple, Russian oligarchs, Goldman Sachs, Starbucks, Donald Trump and his closest associates, and Columbian drug lords all have in common? They are all major, massive users of financial secrecy--even financial invisibility cloaks--to hide, shift, game the system, and pump up their already obscene riches. And that financial secrecy is at the core of what we think of as offshore banks, shell companies, and now sneaky "trusts" to avoid both taxes and regulation, all of which cranks up our now repugnant level of social, economic inequality in America and around the world. Oh, and you are the ones who end up paying their just taxes. This podcast produced by the leading global advocates for social justice in this particular niche has become well known in progressive corners (and among their enemies) in the UK but not really very visible yet in the U.S. But this podcast offers a great introduction to what has become the newest, cutting edge of research in an incredibly important area of social justice. Once you listen its like this hidden underside of the secret system that provides the hidden power system fueling global exploitation, everything you read about politics and the economy and global inequality--even just your ideas about who are the "good guys" versus the "bad guys" in the world--it all looks completely different. Oh, great, professional production values, too. Hey, Americans, try it!

Run to Balance Sheets ,

No balance to the balance sheet

Socialist propaganda.

mjtok ,

Propaganda

Fake facts, globalist talking points and propaganda. These people love every tax and believe that a 100% marginal tax rate would be perfect. No discussions of economics, actual tax law or the theory of taxation. Totally one sided perspective where their narrative is presented as absolute fact. Nothing fair and balanced here. No discussions. No alternative perspectives. Governments are worshiped as utopian models of efficiency and effectiveness. The message is that big government has the solution to every problem and never ever makes mistakes. Governments insatiable demand for more tax revenue should never be questioned. Expected at least a hint of neutrality. Very disappointing.

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