Keep your word
The Good Friday Agreement came into existence after a long and
difficult process of negotiation. No-one got exactly what they
wanted - that is the nature of negotiations. But what emerged was
a final product; the Agreement was finalised on 10 April and
could not be re-negotiated.
Furthermore, all those who backed the Agreement did so on the
understanding that it was the only show in town. Their commitment
was to implement it in all its elements. By doing so they were
acknowledging that it was the only path out of conflict.
Sinn Féin entered into the process in good faith and - after an
intense and thorough debate - the party gave its backing to the
Agreement. In good faith.
Others must now act in good faith. There is a firm deadline for
the setting up of the institutions outlined in the Agreement.
That deadline is 31 October. Those who signed up to the Agreement
must now move to set up those institutions. They must keep their
word.
Taxing issues
Tax burdens, tax defaulters, tax credits, tax rates, tax cuts,
tax harmonisation, tax evasion, tax avoidance - it seems that you
cannot open a newspaper or watch a television bulletin in recent
weeks without one of these taxing issues being a prominent
feature.
One missing ingredient to all of these deliberations is a
discussion of tax equity. The simple notion that taxes should be
fair and that everyone no matter if they are a business or a
worker should all be taxed equitably is ignored. Last year once
again business and high income earners scooped the benefits while
the low paid were overlooked.
Now we are told that the tax burden in the 26 Counties is one of
the lowest among industrialised economies. Yet again we have
another sleight of hand because this statistic fails to take into
account the untaxed billions of punts sucked out of the economy
by multinationals and others every year. In 1997 this siphoning
off of resources totalled over £9.7 billion.
So let's have a debate about tax but make it a real one that
tackles the equity issue and doesn't play with figures. Economic
and social justice must be the objective of any new tax regime.
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