Global bank tax near, says Brown

FT.com ^ | 2/10/2010 | George Parker and Lionel Barber

[GreaterSwiss]

Gordon Brown said on Wednesday the world’s leading economies were close to agreeing a global bank tax, amid hopes in Downing Street that a deal can be concluded at the G20 summit in Canada in June.

Mr Brown believes that opinion has shifted decisively in favour of a globally co-ordinated tax after President Barack Obama’s move last month to raise $90bn (£57.7bn) from a US bank levy.

Gordon Brown The tax could cost the financial services sector tens of billions of pounds a year.

The prime minister has strongly advocated some kind of charge on banks. “I’m interested in the way support is building up for international action,” he said in an interview with the Financial Times.

Last year, Mr Brown mooted a tax on bank transactions – a so-called Tobin tax – as one of a number of options to make sure the “contribution banks make to society is properly captured”.

[GreaterSwiss]

Mr Brown insisted he was not attacking banks or their wealthy employees for ideological reasons. On the new 50p top rate of tax, he said: “We didn’t want to raise the top rate of tax.” He added: “We have no desire to have a tax rate that is higher than necessary.

[Neidermeyer]

Oh Joy ,, this’ll help things...

[GeronL]

These people are really trying to destroy this planet.

[Tzimisce]

One way or another, they’re going to stick it to us. :(:(:(

[BookmanTheJanitor]

The lack of shame is unbelievable these days. You think a guy like this, who turns everything he touches into crap, would just shut up and wait out the rest of his term...but no.

[Flavius]

Remember when conspiracie nuts where nuts

[Sprite518]

Since they now know that almost everyone knows that Global Warming is a joke... This is their new way of stealing our money.

[FromLori]

Problem is they will pass it right back to the people like obama’s favorite banker said

Let’s start with a point made by Jamie Dimon, CEO at JP Morgan Chase:

“Using tax policy to punish people is a bad idea...All businesses tend to pass their costs on to customers.”

Read more: http://stossel.blogs.foxbusiness.com/2010/01/14/2303/#ixzz0fCOnB06q

[eclecticEel]

You hear that sound? That’s the bemused laughter emanating from Beijing.

[ken21]

http://www.attac.org/en/what-attac

[Just mythoughts]

I do not believe for one minute any of these high rollers are ignorant to the fact of exactly where they plan to take up their collection. I can only guess since the climate change hoax was exposed, and cap-n-trade appears to be going NOwhere in Congress. And it will take years in the courts for EPA to legislate, this bunch is needing money NOW and of course where is money stored in a bank.

I sure hope these in the banking community that forked over the campaign cash for these liberal idiots are happy with themselves...

[Thunder90]

I hear other noises too. There is loud Vodka fueled laughter coming from the Kremlin. (Ruskies laughing at us)

[denydenydeny]

And all of it will be passed on to consumers. All of us will be paying this tax so that our masters can fly private jets to the next global conference held in some five-star resort.

[highlander_UW]

And the standard rhetorical question is...and where in the constitution is a federally applied global tax located?

[Nateman]

Finally making it official. The US has been bailing out foreign banks for years. Disgusting.

[Question Liberal Authority]

We have no desire to have a tax rate that is higher than necessary.

The first income tax was something like 1/2 of 1% on every dollar past a whole bunch (at the time).

Once you establish the fact that you CAN tax, the initial amount is irrelevant.

[FL911]

Can someone explain where this tax revenue will go to exactly?

[cranked]

Trickledown economics.....Banks won’t be paying for this, we will.

[hattend]

Wouldn’t this be like a treaty and have to go through a process answerable to “The People”?