Zappone comes down in favour of appealing Apple tax bill

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs Katherine Zappone has said she supports appealing the € 13 billion Apple tax bill for reasons different to those of some of her Cabinet colleagues.

"I have already made clear that I agree with much of what the European Commission says and am of the firm view that the dealings with Apple which may be legal, are certainly not ethical," she said.

Ms Zappone, who was speaking in Wednesday’s Dáil debate on the issue, said the Government’s response to the European Commission’s decision and the fallout must have a strong “tax justice foundation”.

By proceeding with the appeal, the Government was acting fairly and in the interests of equality, as the process would allow those countries who felt robbed or cheated by the past actions of Ireland and Apple to make their case and, hopefully, get the taxes which they lost out on, she added.

Consultation

She said after consulting independent experts from the world of academia, economics, and indeed those who campaigned on the issue of tax justice, she could assure the Dáil the € 13 billion windfall did not exist.

“This money is from avoidance of tax in multiple jurisdictions and each one of them should be entitled to a slice of it,” she added.

As Apple was appealing the finding, she was assured by those who knew the law that any attempt to access such cash now would be open to legal challenge.

Ms Zappone said an independent review of Ireland’s corporation tax code was one of measures agreed by the Government.

She said the view that firms queued up to come here to avoid taxes had little basis.

"In fact, MRBI research two years ago shows that access to Europe and a skilled English speaking workforce were the main reasons to locate here, with the corporation tax rate coming in third," said Ms Zappone.