"The historic moment of the G8 was the transatlantic free trade agreement. There is a real possibility of an agreement with all of North America, including Canada. If negotiations could be concluded quickly, I believe the creation of a Euro-Atlantic common market would be the best response to the crisis. And Italy is the European country with the most to gain from the transatlantic agreement, according to our calculations." This was stated by Prime Minister Enrico Letta at the press conference following the summit in Ireland between the world's eight leading political leaders.
The exchange of information is now a goal within reach. The fight against tax evasion and avoidance, as well as against tax havens—so that all countries join the platform developed by the OECD—is now a no-go, and the word 'Switzerland' is the first that comes to mind. This topic was a central focus of this G8 and I'm sure it will be confirmed at the G20 in St. Petersburg on the agenda for September.
"These are issues that have a very concrete domestic impact in terms of recovering resources and taxes," Letta continued. "The OECD's pressure on tax havens has become unsustainable. The erosion of the tax base by multinationals is also important; Obama has also spoken strongly about it, and it's a deeply felt issue in Italy, too, where our desire to attract multinationals requires rules that force multinationals to pay taxes where they produce."
