EU

Europeans may still be forced to buy biofuels made from food crops until 2030, as a result of the deal struck by EU member states and the European Parliament this morning on the Renewable Energy Directive (RED II), Oxfam said.

EU Finance Ministers must ensure countries removed from the tax haven blacklist deliver significant reforms, said Oxfam today, following an announcement that the Caribbean Islands of the Bahamas, and Saint Kitts and Nevis have been taken off the list.

The European Commission has published a proposal on unfair trading practices in the EU food supply chain. Right now, supermarkets’ poor practices lead to insecurity among their suppliers, which directly impacts the most vulnerable people in the value chain. Oxfam and NGOs welcome this move, and call on the European Parliament and the Council to strengthen the Commission’s proposal.

The European External Investment Plan (EIP) is the EU’s new plan to boost development, growth and jobs in Africa. This paper analyses the agricultural investment window of the EIP. Oxfam and other NGOs highlight concerns and include recommendations to make sure the plan supports small-scale farmers. 

Today's digital tax proposal could help bring EU tax rules into the 21st century, by updating them to the digital economy. However, the European Commission's short-term proposal will not stop tax dodging by big tech firms, and could delay the much-needed global long-term solution. 

With a growing EU gray list of tax havens, the EU must make sure countries follow up on their commitments, or else blacklist them, Oxfam said.

The European Council has started to publish the commitments taken by countries to escape the EU blacklist of tax havens. Governments must now pressure all tax havens on the EU's grey list to make their commitments public, and the EU must ensure tax havens implement the reforms they have promised, or else blacklist them.

The EU is about to set out a multi-year framework for its budget after 2020, which will have an impact on sustainable development worldwide and on the EU’s support for people in humanitarian crisis. Oxfam calls on the EU and its member states to increase aid commitments, in order to reduce the gap between what is needed and what is being given.

It is very good news that the European Commission seems ready to finally tackle harmful tax competition inside the European Union, Oxfam said in reaction to a report criticising seven EU member states for their aggressive tax policies. The organisation also welcomed the increased pressure on tax havens greylisted by the EU to make their reform commitments public.