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- by Amy Cavender

Launch of Tobin Tax campaign film brings together media, politicians, economists and faith-based groups

A new Tobin Tax film narrated by Channel Four journalist and newsreader, Jon Snow, was launched at a reception in the House of Commons on Thursday 27^th February 2003. The newsreader joined Baroness Shirley Williams, The Guardian’s economics editor Larry Elliot and Observer columnist Will Hutton in a fast-paced, effectively argued, 14-minute film.

The film vividly illustrates how a tax on all currency trades would raise enormous sums to fight poverty and stop the worst kinds of foreign exchange trading that causes economic disaster in the world’s poorest countries.

The hope is that this film can be used as an effective tool in bringing the aspirations of the Tobin tax into reality. It will help to equip the Tobin Tax Network and to grow the necessary grassroots support - in a similar way to that achieved in the Jubilee 2000 and landmine campaigns.

The Right Honourable Shirley Williams, in highlighting what James Tobin wanted from the tax, said ‘We have to use revenue to address the inequalities in the world. A small tax on this huge market would help bring poorer countries out of poverty – doubling the amount spent on aid instantly by providing over $50billion each year. It would provide a pool of money that couldn’t be controlled by any one government.’ She suggested the campaign should focus its efforts in a three-pronged approach, for the sake of maximizing impact:

• Reaching out to those sympathetic to the tax (or likely to be), in order to increase the number and strength of the voices campaigning for the tax;

• Organizing seminars led by economists to explain the reality of the situation and to demonstrate how the tax stands up as a sound economic argument;

• Encourage the media, multinationals and others to challenge how finance is making money from finance and how this is feeding from the development of business.

The new chief executive for War on Want said that the Tobin tax would be central to the work around the government’s millennium goals and that “there was only one war that was worth fighting and that was the war on poverty.” The key challenge was in getting the Tobin Tax on the mainstream agenda.

Richard Alan MP spoke on behalf of Harry Barnes MP who had sponsored the launch from the Parliamentary side. He said they were “fighting for civil liberties, asylum seekers and world development.”

If you’d like to learn more please go to www.tobintax.org.uk or you can order a VHS copy of ‘The Tobin Tax’ for £3 (including postage and packing) by sending a cheque made payable to War on Want with your request marked for the attention of David Hillman, Tobin Tax Network, 37-39 Great Guildford Street, London SE1 0ES.

International news on key Tobin Tax developments

• India Breakthrough: India’s prime Minister has called for a tax on international currency transactions to protect the world’s developing economies. Atal Behari Vajpayee said speculators in the money markets had triggered recent financial crises in Mexico, Southeast Asia, Brazil and Argentina. ‘I believe this [levy] is a reform whose time has come’ he said on the eve of the 114-nation Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit in Malaysia. ‘It combines in one effective measure an instrument to protect weak economies from the volatility of capital, to enhance investor confidence through stability of capital markets and to generate valuable development resources.’

• The Mexican Parliament has passed a resolution asking the government to study the currency transactions taxation. Hearings are planned in parliament before the summer.

• In Venezuela in January high ranking economic staff from both the Financial and Economic Ministries entered into discussions concerning the possibility of introducing a currency transactions tax. President Chavez said that Venezuela has decided to study the feasibility of the Tobin tax. No decision has been taken at present.

• Brazil has expressed support for a global currency transactions tax according to Dr Teivo Teivainen, a Finnish member of the International committee of the World Social Forum. The recently elected President of Brazil, Mr Luis Inazio Lula da Silva, confirmed in January that he wants to act for the implementation of the Tobin tax.

• The Belgium Parliament organised hearings in February to assess various draft laws concerning taxation of capital imports and a draft law on a two-tier currency transactions tax, based on the EU’s Value Added Tax. The two-tier Tobin tax incorporates a very low rate tax in order to generate maximum revenue with the ability to increase the rate substantially to prevent currency crises from occurring. Belgium may well be following France as the second country in the world to pass Tobin tax legislation.

• Who will be next?