London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Jul 07, 2025

Sunak urged to back Biden corporate tax plan ‘worth £13.5bn a year’

Sunak urged to back Biden corporate tax plan ‘worth £13.5bn a year’

Campaigners say US global blueprint would help raise billions from multinationals and tech giants

Rishi Sunak has been urged to throw his full weight behind US proposals for a global minimum corporate tax rate after analysis showed it would bring in an extra £13.5bn a year for the public purse.

The campaign group Tax Justice UK said the Biden administration plan would help raise billions of pounds a year for the UK exchequer by hitting multinationals and US tech companies operating in the country with higher tax bills, including firms such as Amazon, Apple, Google owner Alphabet and Facebook.

Under the US blueprint, the world’s 100 most profitable multinationals would be forced to pay taxes to national governments based on the sales they generate in each country, irrespective of where they are based. It would also establish a global minimum tax rate to help bring an end to profit-shifting by multinationals and discourage countries from undercutting each other on tax rates. Washington has suggested a rate of 21%.

Finance ministers from across Europe – including from Germany, France and the Netherlands – have welcomed the US intervention as a signal that significant global progress can be made on tackling tax avoidance by big companies and digital firms.

However, tax campaigners said the UK government had been silent on the US plans, and urged the chancellor to give his full backing to Washington. The Labour shadow chancellor, Anneliese Dodds, also said Britain needed to play a leading role.

“Now that President Biden has moved the debate on, it’s important that our government moves to play its part,” she said.

Paul Monaghan, chief executive of the Fair Tax Mark campaign group, said other big European countries and the International Monetary Fund had responded publicly to the plan. “But we’ve heard nothing from Boris Johnson or Rishi Sunak in the UK as yet,” he said.

“The world has a once in a generation opportunity to embed tax justice and eradicate profit-shifting. It’s vital the UK steps up to the plate and publicly backs what the US and other progressives are trying to do.”

It is understood the UK Treasury recognises the need for an agreement on a global minimum tax rate as part of negotiations taking place at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which is coordinating talks on tax reform between 135 nations.

However, sources said ministers wanted to make sure any solution was balanced and appropriately targeted, while also pointing to a track record of UK leadership on global tax reforms through the launch of a digital services tax last year. Designed as an interim measure before a global deal can be reached, the levy targets the British revenues of search engines, social media services and online marketplaces, and is similar to arrangements in France, Italy and Spain.

A Treasury spokesman said: “We welcome the US administration’s renewed commitment to reach a global solution this year.”

“Updating the international tax rules to ensure that digital businesses pay more tax in the UK, in line with their economic activities, remains a UK priority, and we will continue to work openly and constructively with international partners to develop a consensus-based solution.”

Negotiations at the OECD are expected to centre on the threshold for determining which companies are in scope, as well as the rate for a global minimum. Although aiming for a deal by mid-2021, significant hurdles remain given the lower corporate tax levied by some nations. EU members vary from as low as 9% in Hungary and 12.5% in Ireland to 32% in France and 31.5% in Portugal.

Tax Justice UK said establishing a minimum rate would bring substantial benefits, including more tax revenue for the exchequer, and addressing public anger at tax avoidance by major companies.

According to research for the group by international experts, setting the global rate at 15% would bring in an extra £8.2bn a year for the UK government, while a rate of 20% would generate £13.5bn.

Setting the minimum at 25%, the level at which Sunak will peg the UK’s domestic corporate tax rate at from 2023, up from a current level of 19%, would bring in an estimated £22.3bn, while a rate of 30% would raise £31.6bn annually.

Robert Palmer, executive director of Tax Justice UK, said: “The government should stand up and support these proposals. The UK and its tax haven network have long promoted a global race to the bottom on corporate taxes – this needs to end.”

Comments

Oh ya 4 year ago
Yup the bankrupt US government now wants to set tax rates in the entire world. The world needs to tell the US to get stuffed. Anything the US does around the world is for their gain not anyone else's

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Political Dispute Escalates Between Trump and Musk
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
US Senate Votes to Remove AI Regulation Moratorium from Domestic Policy Bill
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
Jury Deliberations in Diddy Trial Yield Partial Verdict in Serious Criminal Charges
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
King Charles Plans Significant Role for Prince Harry in Coronation
Two Chinese Nationals Arrested for Espionage Activities Against U.S. Navy
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
×