The term tax “competitiveness” has become a staple of tax policy, frequently used as a justification for tax cuts, tax incentives or deregulation which removes social, environmental and economic protections. This has resulted in a ‘race to the bottom’ in terms of both taxation and regulation.
This research programme explores the weakness of the intellectual foundations of the “competitiveness” agenda. We will document the race to the bottom, with a particular emphasis on corporate tax breaks and rates.
We will undertake new work on the ‘finance curse’, the phenomenon where countries become overly dependent on the financial sector to the detriment to the wider economy.
This research stream will produce multimedia tools for engaging with existing and potential allies, and for raising public and political awareness of the threat of the race to the bottom, and the lure of the false narrative of nation state “competition”.
John Christensen
John Christensen is our director leading the race to the bottom programe.
You can contact John by emailing john [at] taxjustice.net