(en) 1/3 TOBIN TAX-- CANADÁ

magellan at netrio.com.br magellan at netrio.com.br
Wed May 5 18:07:10 PDT 1999


PRIMEIRA DE TRÊS PARTES PREMIÈRE DE TROIS PARTS

Ci-dessous on trouvera les debats finals dans le parlement canadien qui ont mené à la motion M-239, laquelle recommande au gouvernement de ce pays-là des études pour l'adoption de la la taxe Tobin. Auparavant, une breve nouvelle.

Abaixo achar-se-ão os debates finais no parlamento canadense que levaram à moção M-239, a qual recomenda ao governo daquele país estudos para a adoção do tributo Tobin. Antes, uma breve notícia.

Salut / Saudações de R. Magellan

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Tobin Tax Motion M-239 Passed by Canadian Parliament

March 24, 1999

Ottawa - Canada has shown world leadership in adopting a motion calling for an international tax on financial transactions, NDP financial institutions critic Lorne Nystrom said today. Motion M-239 was passed by Parliament last night with a vote of 164 to 83. It read: "That in the opinion of the House, the government should enact a tax on financial transactions in concert with the international community".

"This will finally give the Tobin Tax the fighting chance it deserves. The House of Commons in Canada is the first parliament in the world to pass such a motion," Mr. Nystrom said.

Problems with sinking currencies and global deflation have buoyed support for increased global re-regulation. The Tobin Tax could serve as both a means to cool "hot" speculative capital, and it could also raise funds for cash-strapped social programs -- both at home and around the world. "Canadians and the world have seen the effects of today's financial system. Speculative capital is wrecking havoc on the international community. The situation in Latin America, Russia and South East Asia is worsening and is leading to more currency turmoil and global deflation. A Tobin Tax is part of the solution to this problem," Mr. Nystrom said.

In Canada, motion M-239 had the support of a broad coalition of community-based organisations, church groups and non-governmental organisations representing 3 million Canadians. "Groups like the Halifax Initiative and our partners in the CLC were crucial to the success of this motion," Mr. Nystrom said. "Let's keep working together as we take this cause to the international stage."

La Motion du NPD la Sur Taxe Tobin est Adoptée

Ottawa - Le Canada a montré au reste du monde son sens du leadership en adoptant une motion demandant l'imposition d'une taxe sur les transactions financiéres internationales a déclaré aujourd'hui le porte-parole néo-démocrate concernant les institutions financiéres, Lorne Nystrom. La motion M-239 a été adoptée hier soir au Parlement par un vote de 164 à 83. Voici son libellé : Que, de l'avis de la Chambre, le gouvernement devrait adopter une taxe sur les transactions financiéres de concert avec la communauté internationale.

Cela donnera finalement à la taxe Tobin la chance qu'elle mérite. La Chambre des communes au Canada est le premier parlement sur la planéte à adopter une telle motion," a affirmé M. Nystrom.

à Les problémes que sont l'affaissement de la valeur de différentes devises et la déflation à l'échelle de la planéte incitent bien des observateurs de la scéne économique à demander le rétablissement de la réglementation desà activités financiéres internationales. La Taxe Tobin pourrait être un véhicule qui servirait à refroidir les ardeurs des spéculateurs et générerait aussi des sommes pouvant être consacrées au financement des programmes sociaux anémiques, et ce, tant au Canada qu'à l'étranger.

"Les Canadiens et le monde entier voient l'impact que le fonctionnement du systéme financier actuel a sur les économies nationales. Le capital spéculatif est une véritable tornade financiére qui frappe tous les pays du globe. La situation en Amérique latine, en Russie et dans l'Asie du sud-est va en s'aggravant et ébranle encore plus certaines devises ce qui pourrait provoquer une déflation mondiale. Une Taxe Tobin constitue une élément de la solution à ce probléme," a expliqué M. Nystrom.

Au Canada, la motion M-239 a l'appui d'une vaste coalition d'organismes communautaires et confessionnels et d'instances non gouvernementales qui représentent trois millions de Canadiens et Canadiennes.

"Des groupes comme le Halifax Initiative et nos partenaires au sein du CTC nous ont accordé un appui crucial qui a assuré le succés de cette motion," a déclaré M. Nystrom. "Continuons de travailler ensemble pour amener et promouvoir cette cause sur la scéne internationale."

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Private Members' Business [English]

Tax on Financial Transactions

The House resumed from February 3 consideration of the motion and the amendment.

Hon. Lorne Nystrom (Regina-Qu'Appelle, NDP): Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. There have been the usual consultations among all the parties and you should find unanimous consent for me to make a small wording change to my motion to help clean it up.

I would like to ask for unanimous consent to remove from my Motion No. 239 the following words "show leadership and". The amended motion would then read: That, in the opinion of this House, the government should enact a tax on financial transactions in concert with the world community. I have had the usual consultations with the government across the way, the Bloc Quebecois House leader, the whip of the Reform Party, the whip and the leader of the Conservative Party and also with my own party. The Acting Speaker (Ms. Thibeault): Does the hon. member have the unanimous consent of the House to make the change that he has just mentioned? Some hon. members: Agreed. The Acting Speaker (Ms. Thibeault): Resuming debate. When the motion was last before the House, the hon. Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans had the floor. He still has five minutes remaining.

Mr. Wayne Easter (Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, Lib.): Madam Speaker, I want to briefly summarize what I said previously. I explained how much a tax on currency speculation was needed. I also explained that we could not allow the money speculators in New York and elsewhere around the world to sometimes bring countries to their knees by statements that a country was a basket case or whatever which drives trading in the currency down. I also explained that we could not allow money speculators, who just play with paper and create no real wealth and do not produce anything, to jeopardize ordinary people's working lives by their actions.

Let me use the few minutes I have left to build on why Canada should push for such a policy globally. The fact is a small and some would say very tiny tax on currency speculators could stabilize economies. At the same time it could help finance social initiatives and third world development. By stabilizing economies I mean that some speculators who are playing with the financial markets on Bay Street or some other such place have a notion about a country and make a statement that a country is in serious financial trouble, that it is a basket case or whatever. Those words get into some of the investment papers. That one single statement by people play around with money and create no real wealth other than for themselves starts a run on the country's currency and causes serious problems for the finances and people of that country.

Putting this small Tobin tax as it is called on money speculators would ease that kind of activity. They would not play those kinds of games. We are talking about a very small tax, somewhere in the rage of one-tenth of one per cent. That kind of a tax would also bring in a fair bit of return. It would have to be put in place globally. With that kind of financing a lot could be done for the third world in terms of needed social policies. The book Good Taxes by Alex Michalos had this to say about the tax and how it would be put in place:

A transaction tax on purchases and sales of foreign exchange would have to be (1) universal and (2) uniform; it would (3) have to apply to all jurisdictions, and (4) the rate would have to be equalized across markets. Were it imposed unilaterally by one country, that country's FOREX market would simply move offshore ... (5) Enforcement of the universal tax would depend principally on major banks and on the jurisdictions that regulate them. (6) The surveillance of national regulatory authorities could be the responsibility of a multilateral agency like the Bank for International Settlements or the International Monetary Fund. It might be authorized to set the size of the tax within limits. (7) It would have to possess sanctions that could be levied on countries that fail to comply with the measure.

Those points are important. That is what we are saying we have to move toward. All those conditions have to be met. It is important for Canada to lead the way by discussing with other countries that this kind of tax is needed on a global basis. This should lessen the money speculation and would provide moneys to do good things in social policy and other ways for the third world.

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