International Tax Review is part of the Delinian Group, Delinian Limited, 8 Bouverie Street, London, EC4Y 8AX, Registered in England & Wales, Company number 00954730
Copyright © Delinian Limited and its affiliated companies 2023

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

Tax to be at forefront as Mario Monti takes Italy’s top job

u8-mario-monti.jpg

Mario Monti, Italy’s new Prime Minister, is likely to place taxation high on his government’s agenda and will put his experience as former European Commissioner for tax to good use.

From his background at the Commission, and his comments to International Tax Review last year, tax reform is set be a defining element of his premiership.

Monti delivered an influential report last year on how to complete the EU single market including a number of proposals for taxation reforms such as further work on the elimination of tax barriers, the reform of VAT rules in a single market-friendly way, the development of environmental taxation, the establishment of a tax policy group chaired by the commissioner for taxation, and a common definition of the corporate tax base.

Since the report was published, the Commission has established a tax policy group, come forward with proposals for environmental tax reform and for a common consolidated corporate tax base (CCCTB). Its proposals on the future of VAT are expected next month.

When International Tax Review spoke to Monti after he published his report, he was enthusiastic about progress on the CCCTB and his appointment as the new Italian Prime Minister could give a much needed boost to the politically fraught proposal.

“There are difficulties, but the Commission in its previous term - probably also because of the Irish referendum - has probably not pushed very far the exploration with member states,” Monti said. “In my consultations to prepare the report, I have found considerable appetite for CCCTB in the business community and support by several member states. I believe that, if this topic is framed into a broader tax policy discussion and the Commission shows full commitment, it should be possible to make progress.”

Monti said that he was keen for the Commission to “keep a unitary, holistic approach, linking the measures to relaunch the single market”.

Monti’s own approach to the Italian premiership will become clearer as he begins to work with his new cabinet formed today, but it is unlikely the task of rescuing the country’s ailing economy can be achieved without tax reform and in him, Italy has found a much safer pair of hands than Berlusconi.

more across site & bottom lb ros

More from across our site

The German government unveils plans to implement pillar two, while EY is reportedly still divided over ‘Project Everest’.
With the M&A market booming, ITR has partnered with correspondents from firms around the globe to provide a guide to the deal structures being employed and tax authorities' responses.
Xing Hu, partner at Hui Ye Law Firm in Shanghai, looks at the implications of the US Uyghur Forced Labor Protection Act for TP comparability analysis of China.
Karl Berlin talks to Josh White about meeting the Fair Tax standard, the changing burden of country-by-country reporting, and how windfall taxes may hit renewable energy.
Sandy Markwick, head of the Tax Director Network (TDN) at Winmark, looks at the challenges of global mobility for tax management.
Taxpayers should look beyond the headline criteria of the simplification regime to ensure that their arrangements meet the arm’s-length standard, say Alejandro Ces and Mark Seddon of the EY New Zealand transfer pricing team.
In a recent webinar hosted by law firms Greenberg Traurig and Clayton Utz, officials at the IRS and ATO outlined their visions for 2023.
The Asia-Pacific awards research cycle has now begun – don’t miss on this opportunity be recognised in 2023
An intense period of lobbying and persuasion is under way as the UN secretary-general’s report on the future of international tax cooperation begins to take shape. Ralph Cunningham reports.
Fresh details of the European Commission’s state aid case against Amazon emerge, while a pension fund is suing Amgen over its tax dispute with the Internal Revenue Service.