The Global Tax 50 2013
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The Global Tax 50 2013

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For the third year running, International Tax Review brings you its Global Tax 50, the individuals and organisations who have had the greatest influence on tax policy, practice and administration in the last 12 months.

UPDATE: a more recent version of the Global Tax 50 is available.

Last year, the OECD's top tax man, Pascal Saint-Amans, was chosen by us as the world's most influential person in tax. Indeed, many of the people featured in this list are policymakers and politicians, for the sheer power they wield.

This year, however, the global tax agenda has rather run away from policymakers and they are struggling to play catch-up with increasingly vocal demand from the public and the media to crack down on tax avoidance.

Reflecting this, the surprise number 1 spot goes jointly to Starbucks, Amazon and Google. The avoidance scandals involving these three household names shook up the tax world and set the pace and direction of policy change, bringing country-by-country reporting, automatic information exchange and transfer pricing reform to the fore. The three multinational companies may not have had the influence they might have chosen, but they have had a big impact nonetheless.

Our Top 10, listed in order of influence, is available exclusively online, while in the magazine you will find our complete Top 50, listed in alphabetical order.

We welcome comments on our Global Tax 50. Please tell us if you agree or disagree, and who you think should make up next year's list.

Be sure to check out our LinkedIn and Twitter platforms to take part in these live discussions.

You can also compare this year's list against last year's list and the 2011 list.

The Top 10

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Starbucks, Amazon & Google

Multinational corporations

The Starbucks, Amazon and Google controversies focused the debate on corporate tax avoidance in public minds. The three gave evidence about their tax planning to the UK House of Commons's Public Accounts Committee in December 2012.


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Pascal Saint-Amans

Director, OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration

The head of tax at the OECD, Pascal Saint-Amans, is leading the global action against BEPS.


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David Cameron

Prime Minister, UK

Chairing the G8 this year, David Cameron helped put tackling tax avoidance at the heart of the global agenda.


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Algirdas Semeta

European Commissioner for Taxation, Customs Union, Audit and Anti-Fraud

An ambitious reformer, Algirdas Semeta remains the most powerful man in tax across the EU.


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Tax journalists

The fourth estate

Journalists from all over the world seized on the tax avoidance story during 2013, writing and broadcasting material about multinationals' tax and transfer pricing planning that had previously been rarely discussed in public.


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Will Morris

Global tax policy adviser, GE

Will Morris is fighting business's corner in tax policy development.


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Richard Murphy

Director, Tax Research

From fringe activist to mainstream influence, Richard Murphy is setting the tax agenda in a way that must be frightening for his opponents.


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Armando Lara Yaffar

Chairman, UN Tax Committee

Armando Lara Yaffar has been praised for his handling of the UN tax committee, which is becoming a standard setter for developing countries.


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Pierre Collin and Nicolas Colin

Researchers, France

Nicolas Colin and Pierre Collin drafted a report which is likely to set tax legislation in France on a new course.


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Margaret Hodge

Chairwoman, UK Parliament's Public Accounts Committee

While certainly controversial, Margaret Hodge's part in tax policy over the past year is indisputable.


What do you think of the top 10? Is there anyone missing from the top 10? Have your say on Twitter (#GlobalTax50) or LinkedIn. Share this article on twitter.

The complete Global Tax 50

Tony Abbott

Tony Abbott

Prime Minister, Australia


Shinzo Abe

Shinzo Abe

Prime Minister, Japan


Tom Adams

Tom Adams

Executive


Danny Alexander

Danny Alexander

Chief secretary to Treasury, UK


Joaquim Barbosa

Joaquim Barbosa

Chief justice, Supreme Federal Court of Brazil


Piet Battiau

Piet Battiau

Head of consumption taxes, OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration


Max Baucus and Dave Camp

Max Baucus and Dave Camp

Max Baucus, chairman, Senate Finance Committee; Dave Camp, chairman, House Ways and Means Committee


Monica Bhatia

Monica Bhatia

Head of secretariat, OECD Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes


UK Big 4 tax partners

UK Big 4 tax partners

Advisers


David Bradbury

David Bradbury

Former Assistant Treasurer, Australia


BRICS Cooperation Agreement

BRICS Cooperation Agreement

Governments


Richard Brooks

Richard Brooks

Journalist, Private Eye


Nick Burgin

Nick Burgin

VP and global head of indirect tax, BP


David Cameron

David Cameron

Prime Minister, UK


Palaniappan Chidambaram

Palaniappan Chidambaram

Minister of Finance, India


Paul Collier

Paul Collier

Director, Centre for the Study of African Economies


Pierre Collin and Nicolas Colin

Pierre Collin and Nicolas Colin

Researchers, France


Tim Cook and Eric Schmidt

Tim Cook and Eric Schmidt

Apple CEO and Google Executive Chairman


Marlies de Ruiter

Marlies de Ruiter

Head of the OECD's Tax Treaty, Transfer Pricing and Financial Transactions division


Tara Ferris

Tara Ferris

Senior counsel, US Internal Revenue Service


Russ Golden

Russ Golden

Chairman, US Financial Accounting Standards Board


Justice Henderson

Justice Henderson

Judge, High Court of Justice Chancery Division


Margaret Hodge

Margaret Hodge

Chairwoman, UK Parliament's Public Accounts Committee


IF Campaign

IF Campaign

Non-governmental organisation


Antony Jenkins

Antony Jenkins

Chief Executive Officer, Barclays Bank


Lou Jiwei

Lou Jiwei

Minister of Finance, China


Carol Doran Klein

Carol Doran Klein

Vice president and international tax counsel, United States Council for International Business (USCIB)


Mark Konza

Mark Konza

Deputy commissioner, Australian Taxation Office


Armando Lara Yaffar

Armando Lara Yaffar

Chairman, UN Tax Committee


Carl Levin

Carl Levin

Chairman, US Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations


Tizhong Liao

Tizhong Liao

Deputy director, Chinese State Administration of Taxation International Department


Alan McLean

Alan McLean

Executive vice president, tax and corporate structure, Royal Dutch Shell


Angela Merkel

Angela Merkel

Chancellor, Germany


Oscar Molina

Oscar Molina

General administrator of the Large Taxpayers Unit, Mexican Tax Administration (SAT)


Will Morris

Will Morris

Global tax policy adviser, GE


Richard Murphy

Richard Murphy

Director, Tax Research


Michael Noonan

Michael Noonan

Minister of Finance, Ireland


Jeffrey Owens

Jeffrey Owens

Academic


Rand Paul

Rand Paul

Senator, US


Theo Poolen

Theo Poolen

Deputy director general, Dutch Tax and Customs


Vladimir Putin

Vladimir Putin

President, Russia


Akhilesh Ranjan

Akhilesh Ranjan

Competent authority, India


Robin Hood Tax campaign

Robin Hood Tax campaign

Non-governmental organisation


Pascal Saint-Amans

Pascal Saint-Amans

Director, OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration


Parthasarathi Shome

Parthasarathi Shome

Economist


Starbucks, Amazon & Google

Starbucks, Amazon & Google

Multinational corporations


Algirdas Semeta

Algirdas Semeta

European Commissioner for Taxation, Customs Union, Audit and Anti-Fraud


Tax journalists

Tax journalists

The fourth estate


TEI

TEI

Industry association


Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf

Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf

Head of Federal Department of Finance, Switzerland


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