The Taxcast By The Tax Justice Network

In the June 2014 Taxcast: the guillotine vs progressive taxation. the Taxcast looks at Thomas Piketty's book Capital in the 21st Century. Also: welcome to the temporary tax haven of World Cup Brazil; the EU Commission begins investigations into illegal state aid for tax havens; and are developing countries really not interested in tracking illicit outflows from their countries? Plus more scandals

In the May 2014 Taxcast: the Taxcast looks at privatisation and tax: what happens when public assets or services get into private hands? Also, Google's challenged on its tax affairs by its own shareholders; will Congress block the US government's decision to agree to the G20's global transparency standard? And whatever happened to the UK's 'leadership' on public registers of the real owners of companies now it turns out it'll 'encourage' but not 'force' its overseas territories and crown dependencies to sign up to the initiative?

In the April 2014 Taxcast: Forget Congress! The Taxcast looks at the latest US state to take matters into its own hands and legislate against tax havens. Also: the scandal of how the Bank for International Settlements has kept offshore wealth data to itself, the British government tries to impress its friends in Washington with a 'tough' new tax evasion offence, taxing problems in Nigeria and...how will UK Parliamentarian Lord Blencathra manage now his £12,000 (c. $20,000) a month contract with the Cayman Islands has been terminated?

In the March 2014 Taxcast: Russia, Ukraine, Londongrad and the offshore threat to global security. Also: modern day colonialism? Niger battles France over fairer revenues from its uranium; it's official - inequality IS bad for economic growth: the IMF becomes an unlikely advocate for tax justice. And, the European Parliament moves against anonymous ownership of companies by voting for public registers of beneficial owners.

In the February 2014 Taxcast: Are European tax havens getting 'illegal state subsidies'? The European Union's Competition Commissioner thinks so. Are the world's tax havens really going to become more transparent? We analyse the OECD's automatic information exchange proposal, warts and all. And, the tax haven of the Bahamas is broke – the government's solution? Tax the poor! We look at the Bahamian campaign against a Value Added Tax and their demands for a freedom of information act.

In the January 2014 Taxcast: Tax justice goes to the Cayman Islands; we look at the latest fall-out from #OffshoreLeaks, the expose on tax havens from the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists; and HOW much is Africa spending on corporate tax breaks??? The Taxcast looks at tax incentives, Africa-style.

In the December 2013 Taxcast: the clock's ticking for Swiss banks, OECD countries are failing to collect enough information on the real owners of companies, and the Taxcast looks at tax and human rights: lawyers have escaped pulic scrutiny for their role in tax abuse. So far...

In the November 2013 Taxcast: the movers and the shakers in the 2013 Financial Secrecy Index, the pariah states trying to wreck new global transparency measures, and 50 years ago this month US President John F Kennedy was assassinated. Did you know he was trying to tackle tax havens?

In the October 2013 Taxcast: Swiss villagers send some of profit shifting mining giant GlencoreXstrata's money to humanitarian projects, tax havens do some window dressing and HOW many sets of accounts does a multinational corporation really need to file their tax returns? The David and Goliath story of tax collection - even for the United States.

In the September 2013 Taxcast: The Netherlands is getting worried about it's bad reputation - and not because of it's red light district, China steps aboard the G20 automatic information exchange train and what do Tina Turner and Muammar Gaddafi have in common? The Taxcast breaks down the dance moves for the Swiss Shuffle.

In the August 2013 Taxcast: we look at why development money is being invested in developing countries via tax havens and the under-reported elements of the tensions between Spain and Britain over the territory of Gibraltar. Also: tax and the environment - making the polluter pay instead of paying the polluter: the Taxcast investigates the Carbon Tax in British Columbia, Canada

In the July 2013 Taxcast: We analyse the OECD's Action Plan it says is going to tackle corporate tax cheating. And who needs the OECD, the G20 or the G8 anyway? The Taxcast looks at alternative working models governments could implement NOW without any more summits: Japan introduced its Tax Haven Counter Measure Law in the 1970s and Mexico has a tax haven black list and the Dictamen Fiscal rule to help it hold multinational corporations to account.

'Coulds' and 'shoulds' but any real action? We analyse what the G8 summit did for tax justice and why some tax havens may get a competitive advantage. And while the world waits for reform the Taxcast looks at how some countries are finding creative ways around the current global tax system.

In May's 2013 Taxcast: Google and Apple are forced to defend their tax affairs in public, how anti-EU sentiment serves offshore interests and the Taxcast looks at tax havens and the arms trade: how secrecy kills. The Lord of War makes an appearance...

In April 2013's Taxcast: offshore leaks blows the lid off secrecy for sale, the G20 endorse greater transparency (but let's not get too excited) Luxembourge agrees to lift its banking secrecy, Austria next? And the Taxcast takes a look at fake foreign direct investment.

In March 2013's Taxcast: the crisis in Cyprus and the risk tax havens pose to the global economy, a surprise earthquake for UK-affiliated tax havens and a frustrated corporate tax inspector speaks out on the corrupting of the tax system.

In February 2013's Taxcast: Transparency for French banks, taxing the digital economy aka how to worry Google and Amazon, G8 leaders talk up reform of the global tax system - but will they walk the talk? And...is it a bird? Is it a plane? No! It's the OECD! The Taxcast takes a closer look.

In January 2013's Taxcast: a significant ruling against Dell in Spain, India delays rules that would have tackled corporate tax abuse until 2016, the EU threatens to blacklist Switzerland AND we take a look at 'Google Capitalism' (An extended edition to kick off 2013 of just under 20 mins)

In the December 2012 Taxcast: Are banks too big to prosecute? Thanks but no thanks to Starbucks cynical offer to pay some corporation tax after all and we discuss a new system rating corporate tax responsibility for consumers that will be out in 2013. And - how we can reform our tax system to stop abuse.

In the November 2012 Taxcast: is it the beginning of the end of tax avoidance by multi-national corporations? Some countries fight back. And the Finance Curse - why an oversized finance sector's bad for an economy. A special extended edition.