No Representation Without Taxation

Lobbying is not illegal in most countries, but it can nevertheless be a problem for public finances. Lobbying is -by definition- a way of ensuring legislation or regulation favorable to a company, business sector or group of people. More not than often, lobbying results to benefit for public interest, but in most case it is about securing unfair profitability or protection from competition or lowering of standards or something else as ambiguous as that. One of the results of this kind of professional pressure on an international in not global level, is the ability of -mostly large to behemoth- corporations to avoid paying any substantial amount of taxes, by piggybacking on existing legislation with the addition of convenient exemption or redefinition.

There would be two ways of dealing with this problem. One would be to outlaw lobbying altogether, but there is always the risk of returning to the old school practice of covert relations between corporations or interest groups and legislators.

The alternative could be to level the playing field: First by making it mandatory for companies or groups to accurately disclose their activities in this field.

Second, and most important, by enforcing the full and verifiable disclosure of tax payments by companies or groups of companies, together with their results, in a way that enables independent observers to judge the fiscal responsibility of business and inform the public on the matter. Then it would be up to consumers to decide if they really want to pay for this or that mobile phone, cup of coffee or banking service.

Useful reading

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/parliamentary-archives/archives-highlights/archives-stamp-act/

http://www.tagesspiegel.de/themen/agenda/eintritt-ins-parlament-der-bundestag-haelt-geheim-welche-lobbyisten-er-hineinlaesst/11544806.html