1 GENERAL NEWS
1.1 Financial transactions tax
The Council of the European Union has adopted a decision
authorising 11 member states to proceed with the introduction of a
financial transaction tax (FTT) through "enhanced
cooperation" (16977/12).
The 11 countries are Belgium, Germany, Estonia, Greece, Spain,
France, Italy, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia and Slovakia.
The Commission will now make a proposal defining the substance
of the enhanced cooperation, which will have to be adopted by
unanimous agreement of the participating member states.
Discussions on a 2011 proposal aimed at introducing an FTT
throughout the EU received insufficient support within the Council.
That proposal involved a harmonised minimum 0.1% tax rate for
transactions in all types of financial instruments except
derivatives (0.01% rate). The aim was for the financial industry to
make a fair contribution to tax revenues, whilst also creating a
disincentive for transactions that do not
