European Parliament votes for new taxes in EU to repay recovery borrowing

(EurActiv, 17 Sep 2020) The European Parliament voted on Wednesday (16 September) in favour of assigning new tax revenues to the European Union to repay the bloc’s intended joint borrowing of €750 billion for economic recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic

Lawmakers voted 455 votes in favour and 146 against, with 88 abstentions, to introduce new sources of revenue – so called “own resources” – to the EU budget that should at least cover the costs related to the recovery plan.

They could include a tax on unrecycled plastic and on goods imported into the EU from countries with less ambitious climate-change fighting standards. Also under consideration is taxing digital giants and extending an EU CO2 emissions trading scheme into the maritime and aviation sectors.

Leaders hope the €750 billion recovery fund and its related €1.1 trillion 2021-2027 budget will help repair the continent’s deepest recession since World War Two after the coronavirus outbreak shut down economies.

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EurActiv, 17 Sep 2020: European Parliament votes for new taxes in EU to repay recovery borrowing