Global Policy Forum

This statement, made at the NGO Hearings of the General Assembly, addresses the state of Official Development Assistance (ODA) on the eve of the Millennium +5 Summit. While rich nations claim that increasing ODA is impossible due to budgetary constraints, Martens points out that global arms spending topped $1 trillion last year. Martens also criticizes the proposed International Finance Facility (IFF) because it does not incorporate the voices of poor countries, and he concludes that the only feasible way of implementing the IFF is in combination with global taxes as a means for refinancing.

A comprehensive analysis of global tax proposals, with special focus on the carbon tax and the currency transaction tax. The paper considers the political progress of these proposals and their potential for revenue raising, policy steering and redistribution, as well as other common themes.

Brief introduction for those unfamiliar with the issue of global taxes and charges.

Major analytical paper written by Kevin Baumert of Global Policy Forum.

This New York Times article argues that both US Democrats and Republicans could support global taxes on carbon emissions. Opponents of carbon taxes have argued that such a tax would cause excess harm to private consumers, and disproportionately impact the poor. The author suggests, however, that the tax revenues can be used to reverse the effects on the poor. Proponent suggest a carbon tax allows the world's governments to take a long-term perspective on climate change and the future needs of poor economies in a way that the competing cap-and-trade system does not allow.

This BBC commentary calls for a tax on exports from wealthy countries – such as the US and Australia – that have refused to sign the Kyoto Protocol. The author argues that the tax would encourage these governments to "develop responsible climate policies" and could "redress the balance" of production costs between countries that pay for their CO2 emissions and those that "won't take climate change seriously."

The UN Under Secretary General for Least Developed Countries (LDCs) suggested that oil-producing nations should donate ten cents per barrel for infrastructure in LDCs. Among the reasons cited, the UN official listed growing oil profits, under-funded development projects and increasing poverty in many LDCs. Still, Anuradha Mittal of the Oakland Institute cautions against over-anticipation of increased aid, mentioning that 17 of the 22 richest countries give less aid than the UN-proposed 0.7% of gross national product. (Inter Press Service)

Embodied in a strongly oppositional letter from the Senate leadership to the US President before the 2006 G8 meeting, US hostility towards global taxation intensifies. While the conservative group America's Survival warns that the UN actively plans to introduce a global tax, Global Policy Forum's Katarina Wahlberg stresses that, so far, talks on global taxes have taken place primarily outside the UN. According to Wahlberg the US opposition reflects resistance to a more independent UN. (Tax Notes International)

This Stamp out Poverty & World Economy, Ecology & Development paper reports on the Brasilia follow up conference to the "Paris Ministerial on Innovative Financing for Development." Since the Paris meeting, five more countries have joined the Air Ticket Levy (ATL) and the group will launch the "International Drug Purchasing Facility" at the 2006 General Assembly high-level meeting. The authors further report on continued support for a currency transaction tax (CTT) making the time ripe for a "pilot CTT." The report expresses concern that several Northern European countries are not participating sufficiently in the alternative financing process, and that some governments may use revenues for non-developmental purposes.

This paper from the Friedrich Ebert Foundation analyzes the main outcomes of the Brasilia follow-up conference to the "Paris Ministerial on Innovative Financing for Development." The author commends the conference's additional momentum on alternative financing. He further highlights the strong NGO presence at the conference, which ensured that "government representatives were exposed to the full menu of options for additional financing mechanisms." But the paper also reports on NGO regret that governing structures of the "International Drug Purchasing Facility" remain undefined. Moreover the intergovernmental initiative fails to recognize how intellectual property rights impede drug sale in poor countries.

Representatives from forty countries along with international and nongovernmental organizations gathered in Brasilia to discuss alternative development financing as a follow-up to the Paris Ministerial held in March. This chair's summary reports that countries are making progress on the Airline Ticket Levy and the International Drug Purchase Facility. Also participants discussed tax evasion with several proposing a specific conference on the topic. The chair further notes a broad consensus on the need for "civil society" participation in the governance of these initiatives. (Leading Group on Solidarity Levies to Fund Development)

Global taxes can both generate revenue and have a regulatory effect. This report discusses the possibility of an international tax- for example on currency transfers, airline tickets, or carbon emissions. Each country could use the tax revenues towards health, environmental, or otherwise related global initiatives. This added source of income would assist in reaching the Millennium Development Goals and improving the worldwide standard of living. (Friedrich Ebert Foundation)

With France and Chile implementing air-ticket taxes in 2006, the Friedrich Ebert Foundation provides an overview of the Paris conference outcome. Apart from the air-ticket tax, the report also analyzes other initiatives to raise additional money for development. A group of rich countries will set up an International Finance Facility (IFF) to frontload aid for immunization. But, unlike taxes on currency trade and carbon emissions, the IFF initiative will not increase development funds in the long term, nor will it have any positive spill-over on the international financial system or the environment.

This World Economy, Ecology and Development (WEED) paper discusses international taxes and their roles in "regulating and shaping globalization." Arguing that the taxes are "necessary and realistic," the study examines vital developments towards global taxes, including Belgium's adoption of the currency transaction tax and the French-Brazilian initiative to promote global taxes to finance development.

The Boards of Governors of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund affirmed their support of the Millennium Development Goals. In this document they express their will to discuss "the most promising nationally applied and internationally coordinated taxes" at the annual meetings.

This working paper from the European Commission discusses taxes on air fuel, flight departure and currency trade. While global tax supporters often emphasize that the tax revenue should be additional to increases in Official Development Assistance (ODA), this paper suggest that such taxes could in fact finance ODA.