Swiss vote down plan on corporate tax overhaul
The alpine state faces calls from several multinationals to come up with a new proposal, but tax spat is unlikely to pose much of threat
London — A referendum lost. Voters crying foul at cuts to public services. The threat of financial chaos and businesses sent packing. This isn’t Brexit Britain. It’s Switzerland. The country this weekend voted down a government plan to keep offering tasty tax breaks to multinational companies — while still abiding by tougher new international rules. Much like the UK’s vote to quit the European Union or Italy’s referendum on political reform, this is yet another example of a complex legislative proposal put to an increasingly polarised electorate. Opponents of the plan said it would deprive Swiss coffers of Sf2.7bn ($2.7bn) of tax revenue and squeeze public services. The government promised to refund some of those losses and warned that a no vote would send multinationals away. The opponents won. Even the Swiss are fed up with cushy tax deals, it seems. The worry now is that this deals a blow to the image of Switzerland as a low-tax base for rich companies. Firms may now put spending...
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