Progress on Tobin Tax
Around the world and in Britain the international campaign for the "Tobin tax" on foreign currency transactions continues to make rapid progress.
Becasue of the massive volume of foreign currency speculation, currently running at $3 trillion a day, Tobin could raise an estimated $150bn revenue, depending on the rate at which it was levied. This could be used for massive aid to the poor countries of the south.
Its supporters also see it as reducing the volume of currency speculation, and its damaging effects on vulnerable third world economies by making much of it unprofitable.
A world parliamentary appeal was launched at an 11 April Washington press conference to mark the first presentation of a pro-Tobin tax resolution by US Congress member Peter DeFazio. The press conference was also attended by Labour MEP Glyn Ford.
The tax is already supported by the Canadian and Finnish Parliaments. 100 Brazilian MPs have recently voted to support it.
In Britain the Commons motion from Harry Barnes MP has now been signed by nearly 100 MPs. The Liberal Democrats are set to adopt Tobin as official policy.
This astonishing growth in support for Tobin amongst liberal and left legislators is the outcome of a number of different factors – such as increasing pressure of campaigns against third world debt and third world poverty, and concern over the increased instability of neo-liberal capitalism illustrated by the current world stock market crash.
The objective of the world campaign is to gain 1,000 signatures of MPs from 5 continents and to get the tax on the agenda of national parliaments, of the International Monetary Fund, and the G7 group of the world’s richest countries.
In Europe a meeting has been called for the 27-28 June in Brussels of members of national parliaments in support of Tobin.
A successful world campaign will give the lie to those who argue that Tobin would be impossible to implement because currency transactions would be moved offshore. Labour MEPs have recently helped vote down resolutions calling for an end to tax havens such as Jersey and the Isle of Man.
In Britain War on Want has been running a very successful campaign for Tobin, gaining the support for example of the TUC and UNISON. Tobin tax supporters in Britain are planning a major conference in the autumn to plan a campaign.
Only a mass campaign which gains the active support of civil society, including trade unions, NGOs, and campaigning anti-globalisation organisations can begin to put real pressure on Brown and Blair and force them to break with their slavish support for the City’s right to retain its huge speculative profits.