Re:Commission says Ireland granted undue tax benefits of up ...
by alkonaut on Tuesday August 30, 2016 @08:07AM
(#12389255)
How can governments "make deals" with individual companies? Aren't governments making laws and the laws apply to everyone?
Giving a tax break to some specific kind of company (e.g plumbers or taxi companies) sounds dubious but doable.
To my ears this just sounds like the Irish government tried to "make a good deal" with Apple, but the law doesn't allow it. Which sounds obvious.
It feels like a clash of company and government culture: the US one where companies try to get "deals" from states in return for doing business there, and the European one where they can't.
Re:Commission says Ireland granted undue tax benefits of up ...
by wonder_er on Tuesday August 30, 2016 @11:24AM
(#12390967)
Laws apply to everyone, but are selectively enforced. This is why this story is about Apple, and not some no-name mom-and-pop shop that is in equal violation of the law.
Giving a tax break to some specific kind of company (e.g plumbers or taxi companies) sounds dubious but doable.
To my ears this just sounds like the Irish government tried to "make a good deal" with Apple, but the law doesn't allow it. Which sounds obvious.
It feels like a clash of company and government culture: the US one where companies try to get "deals" from states in return for doing business there, and the European one where they can't.