Week 25 - 02/07/2021

Published on 2 July 2021 at 17:08

Global Tax Reform Ratified, As Ireland Object

 

Officials from 130 countries have agreed to overhaul the global tax system to ensure big companies “pay a fair share” wherever they operate, according to BBC news. 

 

The OECD said on Thursday that negotiators had backed a proposed minimum corporate tax rate of at least 15%.

 

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said: “Today is an historic day for economic diplomacy.”

 

Tax on big tech firms has been a source of friction between the US and others.

 

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which led the talks, said that the plans could generate about $150bn (£109bn) in tax revenues a year BBC reported. 

 

But the Paris-based organisation confirmed that Ireland and Hungary – countries with low corporate taxes – had not joined the deal on the global minimum.

 

Statues Toppled As Canada Celebrates National Day

 

A prominent statue of Queen Victoria has been torn down by protesters in Canada as anger grows over the deaths of indigenous children at residential schools.

 

According to BBC news the protesters cheered as the statue at the legislature in Manitoba’s capital Winnipeg was toppled on Thursday.

 

The toppling of the statues came on Canada Day, an annual celebration on 1 July that marks the country’s founding by British colonies in 1867.

 

The recent discoveries of unmarked indigenous Canadian graves at residential schools had prompted calls for national celebrations to be called off.

 

British Soldier Will Not Stand Trial For Bloody Sunday Massacre

 

A former member of the British Army’s Parachute Regiment charged with the murders of two men and five attempted murders on Bloody Sunday will not stand trial according to RTE news.

 

The man, referred to as Soldier F, was charged with murdering James Wray and William McKinney in Derry in January 1972. He was the only person to be charged in connection with the killings of 13 civilians that day.

 

The Public Prosecution Service this morning informed their relatives that it will not proceed with the case against him as there is no longer a reasonable prospect of securing a conviction RTÉ reported.

 

A lawyer representing the families said they do not accept the decision and will mount a legal challenge.

 

Branson Plans Space Flight Days Ahead of Bezos

 

Billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson is set to travel to the edge of space on Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc’s test flight on 11 July, his space tourism firm said, beating out fellow billionaire and aspiring astronaut Jeff Bezos.

 

A successful flight by Mr Branson aboard Virgin’s VSS Unity space plane would mark a key milestone in a race to usher in a new era of private commercial space travel.

 

It would also mean that Richard Branson would travel beyond Earth’s atmosphere ahead of Mr Bezos, the founder of rival space tourism venture Blue Origin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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