Sergei Stanishev, PES President said at the meeting: “Our parties are united in their disgust at the scale of tax avoidance and evasion unveiled by the Panama Papers. At a moment when many people in Europe are facing economic hardship and are suspicious of the elites, this has only reinforced their perception that the system is broken. Tax avoidance is immoral – it should also be illegal. It is a shame that ordinary people are heavily taxed in the name of budget stability, while the richer, better off divert their wealth to tax havens. People won’t accept a system that exploits then and neither will we”.
In the wake of the ‘Panama Papers’ scandal the Party of European Socialists has renewed its commitment to fighting tax evasion. Socialists and Democrats have long called for European action on tax evasion, tax havens and tax fraud. The release of the Panama Papers goes to show that we need to step up our actions and intensify tax transparency to tackle global tax dodging.
The PES Presidency agreed on 11 concrete actions in order to end to tax fraud, tax evasion, aggressive tax planning, money laundering, and to close down tax havens. Multilateral agreements, options for reporting obligations, stronger sanctions for assisting in tax fraud are among the proposals.
PES Presidency Declaration ‘Panama Papers: It is high time to close all loopholes’
After the reopening of the discussion on the Posting of Workers Directive, the PES Presidency declared that it is time to ensure fair mobility in Europe, and equal treatment between posted and local workers. Social dumping, and the undercutting of wages is damaging to all workers, and unacceptable for progressives.
PES Presidency Declaration ‘Ensuring Fair Mobility’
Following recent terrorist attacks in Brussels, Bamako and Istanbul among others, the security of the European Citizens was high on the agenda of the meeting. The PES Presidency expressed its outrage at the attacks in which innocent lives were senselessly taken. The PES Presidency also unequivocally denounced that in the wake of the terrorist atrocities there have been attempts to stigmatize certain religious and ethnic communities. There cannot be any security without the respect for democratic principles and the Rule of Law, the PES Presidency agreed.
PES Presidency Statement following the recent terrorist attacks
The PES Presidency united behind the PES European Youth Plan. This will help to bring Europe’s youth into decent employment and to guarantee equal opportunities in life – from early childhood onwards, while also promoting Europe’s younger generation’s active and critical citizenship. The initiative will be launched this year and will produce concrete outcomes for, and with, Europe’s youth.
Sergei Stanishev, PES President said at the meeting:
“Our European Youth Plan will reinvigorate European Youth’s belief in Europe and their own future, by investing in youth, in quality education and in quality jobs.” Stanishev is currently doing a European Tour to present the plan to PES member parties.
PES Presidency Statement welcoming the PES European Youth Plan
Check the photos of the meeting
List of adopted documents:
