OECD Chief Angel Gurria has called for increased international
cooperation as countries redesign their tax systems to meet future revenue needs
and economic competitiveness challenges.
Speaking to top tax officials
from both OECD and G20 countries, Mr. Gurría encouraged governments to launch a
new dialogue on the best means of achieving a competitive tax
environment.
The conference, which brought together more than 150 top tax
officials from 42 countries, featured wide-ranging discussion on the main trends
driving tax reform over the past 50 years in OECD and non-OECD countries.
Participants also assessed the common pressures impacting tax policy and
administration and what can be done to ensure competitive tax systems in the
future.
Potential areas for future OECD work highlighted in Mr Gurría’s
address include:
++ Development of better analytical tools to measure and
more precisely define the competiveness of tax systems.
++
Creation of a common analytical framework to assess the cost of investment tax
incentives, coupled with regular publication by governments of how much these
incentives cost, and evaluation of whether they are achieving their stated
goals.
++
New joint efforts to reduce compliance costs.
++ Better analysis of how
globalisation and economic integration impact tax systems, to avoid
disincentives for cross-border trade and investment; but also to limit the scope
for tax avoidance via multiple deductions, the creation of untaxed income and
other unintended consequences of international tax arbitrage.
++ Renewed
international dialogue to ensure that existing international arrangements,
including the OECD Model Tax Convention and Transfer Pricing Guidelines, meet
future needs.
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