UK temp agencies’ tax avoidance scheme costs ‘hundreds of millions’
An aggressive tax avoidance scheme used by UK temporary recruitment agencies is depriving the taxpayer of “hundreds of millions” of pounds a year, according to a Guardian investigation. A number of agencies have been making large windfalls by using “contrived” financial arrangements. Reporters say there has been a spike in the number of firms marketing similar schemes since April, when the government closed down a different tax avoidance scheme widely used by the employment agency sector. The discovery will add to the pressure on the already embattled sector, which has been reeling from separate scandals about the exploitation of low-paid workers at companies such as Sports Direct. (Guardian)
Policy
China warns Trump against abandoning climate change deal
China has warned Donald Trump that he will be defying the wishes of the entire planet if he acts on his vow to back away from the Paris climate agreement after he becomes US president. Beijing – once seen as an obstructive force in UN climate talks – is now leading the push for progress at the latest round of UN talks in Marrakech. Chinese negotiators said “any movement by the new US government” would not affect their transition towards becoming a greener economy. India, the EU, Japan and Saudi Arabia also reaffirmed their pledges. The Saudi delegate said the world’s largest oil exporter had “no intention of watering down” its commitment to the Paris deal. (Financial Times: 1;2*)
San Francisco deals major blow to Airbnb with short-term rental law
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors has passed one of the most stringent restrictions on short-term rentals in the US, barring hosts from having paying guests for more than 60 days a year. The measure’s passage is a blow to Airbnb, which had tried to head off the legislation by announcing that it was willing to compromise on an issue that has long vexed city officials — the rental giant’s refusal to provide the names, addresses and guest stays of hosts. Critics of Airbnb and similar firms say they take housing off the market that would otherwise be available to people who want to live here. But the companies argue that the vast majority of hosts still live in their homes, supplementing their income through rentals. (SF Gate)
Corporate Reputation
New Balance decries bigotry after endorsement from neo-Nazi site
An “alt-right” website for white supremacists is encouraging its followers to buy shoes from New Balance in a show of solidarity, after the company said last week that president-elect Donald Trump’s victory was good for American manufacturing. The website “The Daily Stormer” has declared New Balance’s line of footwear the “Official Shoes of White People.” New Balance said in a statement it has zero tolerance for “bigotry or hate in any form.” The company sought to clarify the comments made by its vice president of public affairs last week, saying he would have said the same things about Democrats Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders if either had been elected president. (Boston Globe; Boston Magazine)
Sustainable Development
El Niño and the IMF force water tariff hikes across the global South
Domestic water and wastewater tariffs have soared in cities across the developing world, the latest survey from Global Water Intelligence has found. The survey reveals water and wastewater tariffs have jumped by 12.7 percent in Sub-Saharan Africa and 10.3 percent in Latin America, where utilities were forced to respond to sustained drought conditions as a result of the El Niño climate pattern. The survey also reveals that many countries, including Egypt and Jordan, oversaw tariff hikes this year in order to secure external investment from the IMF and other groups. But the year also saw some of the world’s most advanced utilities in Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands cut their tariffs as efficiencies were passed onto consumers. (Environmental Expert)
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