Multinationals ‘have fought off laws to boost tax transparency’

ABC have reported on the announced delay on important tax transparency legislation. A delay strongly denounced by CICTAR and the NSW Nurses and Midwives Associations

The issue was also covered by the AFR and by Michael West Media, with the eye catching heading ‘Capitulation Complete Government caves in to multinational tax avoiders.’

ABC report that:

‘For those who are hopeful that the aftermath of the PwC tax leaks scandal will usher in a new era of tax transparency, there's a reason to pause.

The Albanese government on July 1 was supposed to pass a law that would have made all companies with global revenues over $1 billion that operate in Australia list the tangible and intangible assets they hold in each jurisdiction with book values.

Business has managed to convince that going public with the information is a bad idea.

So, what will we get instead? No one knows for sure, but what's being flagged is a watered-down version already adopted by the EU, which NGOs worry won't publicly reveal much at all.

Jason Ward, principal analyst at the Centre for International Corporate Tax Accountability and Research, said arguments by business that this would be a major cost impost were over exaggerated given all companies were already reporting this information to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).

"At Brookfield 27 per cent of shareholders voted for public country-by-country reporting," he said, noting 18 per cent of stock is held by the company or their directors, which if taken into account would mean one-third of its shareholders support public reporting.