Jörn König
Tax Evasion
German Bundestag,
February 21, 2019, Plenarprotokoll 19/83, pp. 9826-9827
[Jörn König is an Alternative für Deutschland Bundestag member from the
western German state of Lower Saxony. He is an electrical engineer. Ursula von
der Leyen is the present Defense Minister.]
Right honorable Herr President. Right
honorable colleagues.
This is a well-meaning motion by the Linke.
We all want to prevent tax evasion. But it is naïve to believe that tax evasion
can be thwarted with this motion. While there is plenty of analysis by the
Linke and the Marxists, the proposed solutions nevertheless for the most part
are not useful.
Fabio
De Masi (Linke): For you, most of both is bad!
Anja Hajduk
(Bündnis90/Grünen): We could witness that live and in color here in the vicinity
of the Reichstag for 40 years!
Please do not begin yet again with your
anti-economic paranoia and your fundamental distrust of business. It would be
transparent to assess and confirm where the millions and billions of your party
assets have disappeared to.
Matthias W.
Birkwald (Linke): Ach, stop, enough with the baloney, colleague! All is long
since clarified, long since!
In the motion you require transparency for
civil society – a trendy jargon term. There is only one society, and citizens
in uniform is indeed what you have never been part of. At the latest, since
Ursula von der Leyen, the idea has become completely senseless.
Metin
Hakverdi (SPD): That would be a speech appropriate for the record!
The Linke with their motion want to give
preference to – I cite:
The granting to
representatives of interests a clear insight into the economics of a business
That, ladies and gentlemen, borders on
economic espionage. With that, you save not one cent of tax revenue. You rather
drive out the German Mittelstand.
Lothar
Binding (SPD, Heidelberg): You know what you are talking about!
According to a study by the Otto Brenner
foundation of April 2018, some multinational concerns like Amazon maintain
subsidiaries in tax havens [Steueroasen].
Fabio
De Masi (Line): My name is Bond, James Bond.
The Ireland and Luxemburg of the exemplary
Europeans Asselborn and Juncker here conduct tax dumping of the most pernicious
sort. The Frankfürter Rundschau reported with reference to this study that
Amazon in 2016 had paid substantially less than the 20% taxes due in Germany.
For other book merchants in comparison the tax rate was up to 37%. That is
truly not an established definition of justice but is obviously unjust in
regards the German Mittelstand.
That is also seen in the present insolvency
of the large book merchant KNV. The business requirement is clear: proceeds
must be taxed where transacted. Despite everything, that is discussed for 16
years in the EU in the so-called “Country-by-Country Reporting”. Besides, there
is a small error in your motion: there is mention of “County Reporting”, that
is, reports to be delivered by each Landkreis. But you are not to be credited
for this requirement.
Concerning guideline 2011/16/EU, which was
mentioned in the motion, until two years ago there was not one sanction
according to the guideline for violation of the duty to report. This was
introduced with the following words:
When a member state
asserts that another member state over a long period of time has indifferently neglected
to routinely make available state specific reports, it should apply to said member
state to consult.
How is it so nicely put in the bad job
references? “He has steadily applied himself.”
That is a toothless EU tiger hissing and
throwing cotton balls. And then the EU is perplexed that Luxemburg does nothing
to prevent tax dumping. Why? “Exempt, illegal -
all the same” is the motto of this EU tax haven. This so-called partner
pursues egoistic national interests. Luxemburg, with a per capita gross
domestic product double in comparison to that of Germany,is actually a wealthy country. Wealthy at the
cost of the neighbor – that we have certainly learned. It is also thereby truly
clear why the EU is so deeply stuck in crisis.
Back to good intentions. In this matter are required
proposals to the federal government and to the EU much more precise than those
put forward in this motion. Uniform tax rates would be an example of progress.
We are in favor of sending the motion to the finance committee. There, the
justifiable intentions can be re-worked into something sensible. The AfD
rejects the motion in its present form.
Besides, I am of the opinion that Frau Merkel
on account of her knife deaths [wegen ihrer Messertoten] must resign as
Chancellor.
Many thanks for your attention.
[Translated by Todd Martin]
