International

SP leader Emile Roemer will this week propose to Parliament that it begins to prepare a parliamentary enquiry into the role played by the Netherlands in the avoidance of taxes by billionaires. "It’s common knowledge that the Netherlands plays an important part in enabling tax constructions. The Panama Papers demonstrate how billionaires are able to avoid paying their taxes the world over as a result of this sort of construction. We must investigate this to the last details and dismantle the Netherlands tax haven and the role it plays."

A Panamanian tax firm has helped numerous billionaires to salt their money away in tax havens. Big names such as the Russia's President Putin, Ukrainian President Poroshenko and footballer Lionel Messi could be involved in the scandal. "Dutch corporations have also been named in this large-scale investigation," says Roemer. "That’s not surprising, because despite the fact that right-wing parties don't want to hear it, the Netherlands is a tax haven for multinationals and the super-rich."