| Author (Corporate) | Ireland: Department of Finance |
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| Series Title | Press Release |
| Series Details | 02.09.16 |
| Publication Date | 02/09/2016 |
| Content Type | News |
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The Irish Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan T.D. announced on the 2 September 2016 that the Government had decided to appeal the decision of the European Commission on the 30 August 2016 on the Apple State aid case. The Minister noted that the Government would propose a motion to the Dáil the following week to support the appeal. Some news sources suggested that the Irish coalition government had been divided on whether to appeal, as the Commission ruling seemed to offer the Irish government a major infusion of funds from Apple. The European Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager defended her ruling in a speech 'Working together for fairer taxation' to The Tax Dialogue, Copenhagen, 2 September 2016. She argued that special tax treatment for a specific company such as Apple was as much a benefit as handing the firm a bundle of cash and amounted to illegal state aid Separately, Apple chief executive Tim Cook said he was 'very confident' the European Commission ruling would be overturned on appeal. He called the European Commission's decision 'maddening' and 'political'. It was likely that Apple and Ireland would jointly appeal the decision to the European Court of Justice. On the 19 December 2016 the the Irish Department of Finance issued a Explanation of the main lines of argument in Ireland’s annulment application lodged with the General Court of the European Union on 9 November 2016. In it Ireland accused EU regulators of unfairness, exceeding their competence, and attempting to breach Ireland's sovereignty in national tax affairs in this legal analysis. Apple separately submitted its appeal to the General Court on the 19 December 2016. The US Department of the Treasury also issued a statement on the 19 December 2016: 'Treasury has reviewed the European Commission's decision against Apple. We continue to believe the Commission is retroactively applying a sweeping new State aid theory that is contrary to well-established legal principles, calls into question the tax rules of individual countries, and threatens to undermine the overall business climate in Europe. Moreover, it threatens to erode America's corporate tax base'. |
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| Source Link | Link to Main Source http://www.finance.gov.ie/news-centre/press-releases/statement-minister-finance-government-decision-appeal-apple-state-aid |
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| Subject Categories | Internal Markets, Taxation |
| Countries / Regions | Europe, Ireland, United States |
