Money, politics and economics must serve, not rule. They must serve people and promote an ethics of truth. This was the thread running through Pope Francis Letter to the British Prime Minister on the eve of the G8 Summit.
The Isle of Man and Jersey have hit back at accusations that they facilitate tax evasion and avoidance ahead of next week's G8 summit. The offshore jurisdictions, frequently described as tax havens, suggest recent pressure from world leaders is politically motivated.
President Juan Manuel Santos revealed on Friday in London that Colombia has been cooperating with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO, “since a long time”. Last June first the Colombian Executive announced that the Ministry of Defence was going to sign an agreement with NATO “to begin the process of becoming closer to NATO”.
Argentine tourists have staged a British invasion, with record numbers flying in to the UK in the last year, according to an article by Matt Chorley published in the Daily Mail. The influx of more than 100.000 visitors, up more than a quarter year-on-year, comes despite renewed tensions between the two countries over the status of the Falkland Islands.
People using tax havens have deprived governments worldwide of £100 billion in revenue, enough to end extreme poverty twice over, according to new figures published by Oxfam. The total amount of lost tax revenue is far higher than £100 billion, as the figure only includes tax dodged by individuals, and not companies.
Britain, France and Germany called for stricter rules to stop companies such as Google, Apple and Amazon aggressively avoiding taxes in austerity bitten Europe, while acknowledging they had done nothing unlawful.
Prime Minister David Cameron has urged British overseas territories to get their house in order and sign up to international treaties on tax. He wrote to 10 territories and crown dependencies, including the Cayman Islands and the Isle of Man, which operate low-tax regimes.
A total of 114 Conservative MPs have backed an amendment to the Queen's Speech expressing regret an EU referendum bill was not part of the government's agenda for the year ahead. Euro-sceptic Tories forced the vote as part of efforts to make Prime Minister David Cameron's pledge for a poll in 2017 binding.
By PM David Cameron - The Wall Street Journal - Britain and America have a proud history of working together to meet the great challenges of the day. Ours is a partnership without parallel, rooted in our values of freedom and enterprise—advancing not just Britain’s and America’s interests but the good of people around the world.
The following article by Neil Gardiner (*) was published by The Telegraph - The British prime minister jets into Washington this weekend, for a meeting with President Obama at the White House on Monday. As I noted in a piece earlier this week, this is an opportunity for David Cameron to look like a statesman, not a cheerleader. His last visit to Washington was an embarrassment, with the British leader fawning all over the most left-wing and anti-British president of modern times, even de facto endorsing Obama for a second term as president.