Maya Forstater

New paper from @gabriel_zucman cited by @Ed_Miliband showing that the idea that companies are mobile is wrong. They shift profits, but it’s much harder to shift jobs/factories - so govts shouldn’t be so focused on cutting corporate tax rates. http://gabriel-zucman.eu/files/TWZ2018.pdf … @alexcobham

To my mind: The main point in this article is the 40% profit-shifting figure. It should wake up the entire global policy world.

NB: 40% of *foreign* profits of multinationals = 5% of corporate profits overall (85% corp profits are in their home jurisdictions) Estimated revenue at stake (from the paper) is <1% of total tax revenues of govts. The global policy world should make sure it asks '40% of what?'!

1% is an absolutely enormous sum.

Sure. But 40% sounds like a lot more! The estimates by @LudvigWier @TTorslov @gabriel_zucman are right in the ballpark of the @OECDtax $100-240bn estimates which informed the BEPS reforms

The OECD results are unsupportable - they rely on Orbis data which systematically omits both lower-income countries and secrecy jurisdictions, so can only understate patterns of profit shifting