February 17 marks the Global Day of Action for a Robin Hood Tax. Hundreds of campaigning organisations from over twenty countries, including Oxfam, will be calling on governments to support a Financial Transaction Tax (FTT) on the millions of large transactions that take place every day between financial institutions. It is expected that a tiny tax of only 0.05 per cent on banking transactions could produce billions of dollars to help repair the human damage caused by the global economic crisis, protect public services at home, fight poverty abroad and help foot the bill for climate change.
February 17 marks the Global Day of Action for a Robin Hood Tax. Hundreds of campaigning organisations from over twenty countries, including Oxfam, will be calling on governments to support a Financial Transaction Tax (FTT) on the millions of large transactions that take place every day between financial institutions.
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| An Oxfam organised Robin Hood Tax protest at the World Social Forum in Dakar, Senegal this week |
It is expected that a tiny tax of only 0.05 per cent on banking transactions could produce billions of dollars to help repair the human damage caused by the global economic crisis, protect public services at home, fight poverty abroad and help foot the bill for climate change. This tax could help solve a lot of the world’s major problems, without costing ordinary citizens a penny.
Initially proposed by Nobel-prize-winning economist James Tobin, international support for the Robin Hood Tax has grown steadily and is backed by financiers, economists and politicians globally, most notably French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
The Global Day of Action is happening ahead of the G20 finance ministers meeting in Paris this month. President Sarkozy has placed the FTT on the agenda, following his call at the influential Davos World Economic Forum for a new tax on the financial sector to pay for international development and climate change.
The New Zealand Government has not looked in depth at the benefits of an FTT and Oxfam New Zealand is reiterating its call for the government to do so. New Zealand banks are adept at using legal loopholes and tax havens to avoid paying their fair share of tax and the New Zealand dollar attracts massive trading and speculative attacks due to its volatility. The Kiwi dollar is the world’s 11th most traded currency, far beyond its role in the real economy.
The implementation of an FTT has the potential to raise significant revenue, to support international obligations and reduce the volatility of the New Zealand currency. It’s a win-win-win.
