The Sherwood Echo: Friday 2nd July
July 2nd, 2010 by Maid Marian
Posted in: Latest, The Sherwood Echo, Top stories
Following the Budget announcement and the G20 in Canada, the Robin Hood Tax is being talked about in the UK and all over the world.
Westminster Tube Takeover
The Robin Hood Tax billboards can now be seen in Westminster Tube station. We asked Osborne to tax the banks, not the people – take a look at our response to the Emergency Budget. Check out the Robin Hood Tax on Flickr if you want to see more of the Westminster Tube takeover.
Robin Hood Champions
In the run-up to the Budget, thousands of you emailed your MPs asking them to support the Robin Hood Tax. Check out who are the Robin Hood Champions in Parliament so far. MPs Stella Creasy, Toby Perkins and Caroline Lucas have also called for the introduction of a Robin Hood Tax during Prime Minister’s Questions in Parliament.
Robin in the Media
In the run-up to the Budget, 35 leading economists including Stephany Griffith-Jones wrote a letter to the Guardian calling on the new Government to introduce an ambitious tax on the banks. A condemnation of the potential VAT rise, pay freezes and spending cuts also appeared on the front page of the Guardian, backed by members of the Robin Hood Tax Coalition including Oxfam, Save the Children and the TUC. Calls for a Robin Hood Tax were noted in the post-Budget analyses of the Economist, the Telegraph, the Guardian, the Mirror, City AM, Forbes, Finance Markets, the Yorkshire Post and politics.co.uk.
The Robin Hood Tax has been appearing on the BBC – MP Caroline Lucas asked for a Robin Hood Tax during Question Time, and Oxfam Campaigns Director, Phil Bloomer, gave a strong argument for a Robin Hood Tax on Radio Five Live during a discussion on poverty in Africa and the UK. The Robin Hood Tax Campaign also featured prominently in an episode of Channel 4’s Dispatches aired on Monday 21st (the Campaign is discussed after the 9th minute of the broadcast).
Robin at the G20
At the G20 in Canada, British actor Bill Nighy put pressure on world leaders to honour their commitments to developing countries and to adopt a Robin Hood Tax. Take a look at Bill’s blog for the Huffington Post as well as Robin’s feedback from Toronto. The EU also said the G20 should reconsider the introduction of a global transaction tax on banks. The G20 nations did not come to an agreement on an international bank tax, but will discuss the issue again when they meet later this year in South Korea. The path is now clear for individual nations or groups of nations to implement their own bank taxes.
The Robin Hood Tax Campaign has welcomed an agreement reached by the EU Council and European Parliament over capping bonuses for bankers. In Europe, Greece has recently joined France, Germany, Austria and Belgium and come out in support of a Financial Transaction Tax, while Indonesia has also agreed to back the tax.
That’s all for this week.
Stay merry. Marian.
