Fw: Tax: Laws in some countries do not meet global standards

Thursday, January 27, 2011

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From: <Sara.SREBERNY-MOHAMMADI@oecd.org>
Date: Thu, 27 Jan 2011 19:10:40 +0100
Subject: Tax: Laws in some countries do not meet global standards

OECD – Paris, 27 January 2011

 

Tax: Laws in some countries do not meet global standards 

 

The Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax purposes, hosted by the OECD, has released ten reports which evaluate jurisdictions' commitment to tax transparency and examine whether information is made available and accessible to foreign tax authorities. These reports follow eight others released in September 2010.

 

The Global Forum has been mandated by the G-20 to assist specific jurisdictions, as well as the international community, to assess the status of national tax legislation, examine whether the laws are enforced, and make recommendations for improvement. 

 

For five jurisdictions the Global Forum is releasing Phase 1 reports which assess the legal and regulatory framework of the jurisdictions. The other five combine Phase 1 and Phase 2 reviews  assessing both the legal framework and the practical implementation of the standard.

 

Phase 1 reviews

 

Four jurisdictions, Barbados, the Seychelles, San Marino and Trinidad and Tobago fall short of the international standard and will need to implement the recommendations made in their reports before moving to the next phase of their evaluations. It has been noted in the case of San Marino that important legislation has recently been passed (see annex 1 of the report) and will further be examined by the Global Forum.

 

The report on Guernsey shows that a satisfactory legal framework is in place but that there are minor issues that Guernsey has been asked to address.

 

Combined reviews

 

Mauritius underwent a combined review which showed that there are missing elements in the legal framework such as accounting information on some of the offshore companies. The assessment of the practice in Mauritius shows that there is room for improvement, in particular as regards the access to bank information by the tax authorities.

 

The four other "combined" reviews show that the systems in place in Australia, Denmark, Ireland and Norway have achieved effective exchange of information in practice. However, there are some minor issues related to information on bearer shares or nominees which will have to be addressed.

 

 

More than 60 reports will be completed by year end.

 

Contacts: Jeffrey Owens, Director, Centre for Tax Policy and Administration at +33 1 45 24 91 08 or jeffrey.owens@oecd.org / Pascal Saint-Amans, Head of the Global Secretariat at + 33 1 45 24 97 46 or pascal.saint-amans@oecd.org

 

Information on the work of the Global forum is available in the background information brief.

More information on the Global Forum is available at www.oecd.org/tax/transparency

 

 

The reports at a glance

Phase 1 Reviews: Legal and Regulatory Framework

 

Barbados: Some deficiencies have been identified in Barbados bilateral treaties and Barbados has not yet signed new agreements with all jurisdictions wishing to do so. The implementation of recommendations made in the report to address these and other matters will be reviewed in the next 12 months, and only then Barbados will be considered for moving onto the next phase of the evaluation.

 

Guernsey: The review of Guernsey showed that its legal and regulatory framework is largely in place to ensure effective exchange of information, notably sound access powers and an expanding network of bilateral agreements. Improvements to some accounting rules should nevertheless be made. The evaluation of the practical implementation of this framework will take place in 2012.

 

San Marino: The peer review has identified some deficiencies in the domestic laws of San Marino, notably including limitations in the authorities' powers to obtain information mainly on civil tax matters for the purpose of international cooperation. As a result it is not yet ready to move to the next stage of the evaluation.  San Marino has in the recent months passed a number of laws with a view to overcome these shortcomings.  Its position will therefore be reviewed.

 

Seychelles: The review of the Seychelles showed deficiencies as regards the availability of ownership and accounting information in respect of offshore entities. In addition, powers to access information should be strengthened. Amendments to its legal and regulatory system are necessary in order for the Seychelles to qualify for the next phase of the evaluation.

 

Trinidad and Tobago: Trinidad and Tobago is party to a number of bilateral treaties and a multilateral convention. However, it is unable to exchange information to the international standard since not all but one of these agreements has restrictions on access to information by Trinidad and Tobago's tax authorities. The implementation of the recommendations made in the report will be reviewed in the next 12 months, before Trinidad and Tobago is considered for the next phase of the evaluation.

 

 

Combined reviews: Legal and regulatory framework and also the implementation of that framework in practice

 

Australia: Australia is exchanging information to the standard with almost 80 countries. Australia's legal and institutional framework supports effective access to and provision of information requested by competent authorities of other jurisdictions.

 

Denmark: Denmark is exchanging information to the standard with almost 100 countries. Denmark's legal and institutional framework supports effective access to and provision of information requested by competent authorities of other jurisdictions.

 

Ireland: Ireland is exchanging information to the standard with over 50 countries. Ireland's legal and institutional framework supports effective access to and provision of information requested by competent authorities of other jurisdictions.

 

Mauritius: Mauritius has revised its legal and regulatory framework to give its competent authority broad access to most relevant information. However accounting information is not available in all cases and powers to obtain some information are untested. A further analysis will be undertaken in 6 months to assess whether Mauritius exchanges this information effectively and in a timely manner.

 

Norway: Norway is exchanging information to the standard with more than 100 countries. Norway's legal and institutional framework supports effective access to and provision of information requested by competent authorities of other jurisdictions.

 

 

Right to sanitation in India - Workshop in Geneva, 27-28 January

Saturday, January 22, 2011

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From: "IELRC.ORG" <info@ielrc.org>
Sender: ielrcnewsletter@gmail.com
Date: Fri, 21 Jan 2011 12:46:37 +0530
To: <mova@alafghani.info>; <info@ielrc.org>
Subject: Right to sanitation in India - Workshop in Geneva, 27-28 January

Dear Colleague,
 
The International Environmental Law Research Centre (IELRC)  is organising a with the support of the Law Environment and Development Centre, School of Oriental and African Studies – University of London (SOAS) a workshop on the Right to Sanitation - Lessons from India in Geneva on 27–28 January 2011. 

This workshop will discuss key legal and policy aspects of the right to sanitation in India, one of the first such events to focus on the legal aspects of sanitation in India. Speakers will include lawyers who have worked on legal aspects of sanitation in pratice and theory, as well as a variety of other speakers, including the founder of the movement against manual scavenging. 

The full programme of this workshop is available at http://ielrc.org/activities/workshop_1101 and is also attached to this message.

This workshop is open for participation but registration is compulsory. Please register by sending an email to sanitation@ielrc.org. For any further information, please write to sanitation@ielrc.org.




International Environmental Law Research Centre (IELRC) 
International Environment House II, 1st Floor, 
7 Chemin de Balexert, 1219 Châtelaine, Geneva, Switzerland

Phone: +41 (0)22 797 26 23 Fax: +41 (0)22 797 26 23 
Email: info@ielrc.org  
www.ielrc.org

Symposium and Workshop: National strategies for promoting security and sustainability within a rapidly changing world

Thursday, January 20, 2011

http://www.dundee.ac.uk/water/symposium/


National Water Law: Managing Global Water Resources




Symposium and Workshop: National strategies for promoting security and sustainability within a rapidly changing world




June 20-24, 2011; Centre for Water Law, Policy and Science, University of Dundee, UK



Time Activities of Day 1: Monday 20th June 2011  
 9:00  Coffee and Registration
 9.30   Welcome – Principal Pete Downes,  Rector Brian Cox, Professor Patricia Wouters and Mr Andrew Allan
 10.00 The role of National Water Law - Professor Dan Tarlock. Includes break
 12.30 Lunch
 13.30 Water resource management and the implementation of national water law - Prof. Mike Muller
 15.30 Break
 16.00 What's in it for me? – group exercise
 17.00 Day 1 wrap-up – Prof. Patricia Wouters & Andrew Allan
 17.30 Reception
 Time Activities of Day 2: Tuesday 21st June 2011
 9.00 Introduction
 9.30 Water allocation systems - Andrew Allan.  Includes break.
 12:30 Lunch
 13:30 Excursion – Trip to St Andrews


Time
Activities of Day 3: Wednesday 22nd June 2011
9:00Introduction
9:15The management of water quality - Prof. Bill Howarth.  Includes break.
12:30Lunch
13:30Case study on national water law in India - Videh Upadhyay.  Includes break.
17:00Wrap-up day three Prof. Patricia Wouters and Andrew Allan
18:00Reception and Symposium Gala Dinner


 Time Activities of Day 4 Thursday 23rd June 2011
 9:00 Introduction
 9:15 An introduction to the law on groundwater – Andrew Allan. Includes break
 12:30 Lunch
 13:30 Progression routes for continuing professional development: PG Cert, LLM (optional session) – Dr Sarah Hendry
 17:00 Legal case study group exercise.  Includes break
 18:00 Wrap-up day four Prof. Patricia Wouters and Andrew Allan
 TimeActivities of Day 5: Friday 24th June 2011
 9:00 Introduction
 9:15 The European legal context and the Water Framework Directive – Dr Sarah Hendry. Includes break
 12:30 Lunch
 13:30 Symposium wrap-up and closing remarks
 14:00 Sir Alan Langlands  Water Leaders Prize award
 15:00 Close

Fwd: Your Paper Makes SSRN Top Ten List

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Note: this is a working paper. Your comments are highly appreciated
-----

Your paper, "The Potential Role of the Human Right to Water in the Management of Indonesia's Water Resources", was recently listed on SSRN's Top Ten download list for Environment & Natural Resources eJournal. As of 12/27/2010, your paper has been downloaded 11 times. You may view the abstract and download statistics at http://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=1723205.

Top Ten Lists are updated on a daily basis. Click on the following link to view the Top Ten list for the journal Environment & Natural Resources eJournal Top Ten.

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Fwd: Your Paper Makes SSRN Top Ten List

 


Dear Mohamad Mova Al 'Afghani:

Your paper, "The Potential Role of the Human Right to Water in the Management of Indonesia's Water Resources", was recently listed on SSRN's Top Ten download list for Environment & Natural Resources eJournal. As of 12/27/2010, your paper has been downloaded 11 times. You may view the abstract and download statistics at http://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=1723205.

Top Ten Lists are updated on a daily basis. Click on the following link to view the Top Ten list for the journal Environment & Natural Resources eJournal Top Ten.

Click on the following link to view all the papers in the journal Environment & Natural Resources eJournal All Papers.

To view any of the Top Ten lists, click the TOP button on any network, subnetwork, journal or topic in the Browse list reachable through the following link: http://www.ssrn.com/Browse

Your paper may be listed in the Top Ten for other networks or journals and, if so, you will receive additional notices at that time.

If you have any questions regarding this notification or any other matter, please email AuthorSupport@SSRN.com or call 877-SSRNHelp (877.777.6435 toll free). Outside of the United States, call 00+1+585+4428170.

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Indonesia - Investment Policy Review – OECD

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

The 2010 OECD Investment Policy Review contains a quite comprehensive assessment of Indonesia’s regulatory and investment policy. For those of you who areinvestment lawyers, Chapter 2 discusses in depth, Indonesia’s  implementation of international investment principles. Other aspects such as competition policy, infrastructure, and corporate governance were also addressed. A sneak peak of the book is available in Google Books . The book dedicate a sub chapter on water infrastructure (ch 5.6) and cited my newspaper Article (Indonesia Needs a Strong Water Services Law). The analysis on water related investment is not really in depth, but it agrees that vague laws and regulations could be a deterring factor for foreign investment in this sector. The book’s executive summary is available for a free download, but the complete hard and soft copy versions are not free.



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Transparency fighters and the rejection of authority

Monday, December 20, 2010

 

What do whistleblowers, transparency fighters, file sharing activists and defectors have in common? They may all possess the same personality trait: a rejection of authority. According to Esther Dyson in project syndicate:

 

 

But you probably need to be a bit weird and callous to devote your life to transparency for others. Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the imprisoned ex-CEO of what was Russia's largest oil company, is another example of a flawed, uncompromising person who challenged the flawed people in power and their unaccountability. Such people do not die for our sins; Rather, they sin on our behalf, so that we may live comfortably while they afflict the authorities at great personal risk and in disregard of (authorities' interpretation of) the law and sometimes even ethics.

Information is always used to impose and safeguard an established authority. Because knowledge is power, only the priest are allowed to read the scriptures. This is evident in the ancient Mayan civilization who restricts the ability of reading and writing into a small circle of elite class. The spread of the printing press in the European history allows the Bible to be studied by commoners and along with Luther’s writings, paves the way to protestanism, ending the Catholic church monopoly to human salvation in the Christian world. 
Within the psyche of these leakers – whistleblowers, journalists, spies-- whatever you wish to call them, is the hidden desire to achieve some sort of equilibrium and a resentment to authority. These people are anarchists.