Mortgage News
Sarkozy announces French financial transaction tax
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has announced plans to introduce a tax on financial transactions to both create a “shockwave and “set an example.”
The tax is part of a range of measures to promote the economy, create jobs and improve his electability in the run up to the Presidential election in April.
Sarkozy is currently trailing behind his Socialist rival, Francois Hollande in the polls, according to the BBC story.
The tax is expected to raise €1.3bn a year with a 0.1% levy on each share dealing transaction where bonds are exempt from the tax.
In an interview on French television, Sarkozy said he hoped other countries would also step up to the tax adding, “there is absolutely no reason why those who helped bring about the crisis shouldn’t pay to restore the finances.”
French and German proposals for an EU-wide financial transaction tax were among the reasons the British Prime Minister David Cameron vetoed EU treaty changes at a summit in Brussels in December.
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Cameron said at the time a levy of this kind would penalise the City of London where 75% of European financial transactions take place.