In These New Times

YLE.fi

8th January, 2012

Finland’s Finance Minister Jutta Urpilainen hopes a tax aimed at curbing currency speculation will be adopted widely across the EU. She added Finland was one of the keenest promoters of such a financial transaction tax within the union.

“I hope the tax would be effective over the widest possible geographical area with the participation of several European countries. We need to agree on a tax model that other nations can accept. As a result France would not need to go forward solo on the issue,” Urpilainen said.

Last Friday, French President Nicolas Sarkozy warned France will go it alone if it cannot convince its European partners to quickly impose a new tax on financial transactions. He believes in the financial transaction tax along the lines of the so called “Tobin tax” intended to penalize speculators from short-term financial round-trip excursions into other currencies

In Urpilainen’s view, a jointly agreed tax was the best solution.

Several EU nations support the tax aimed at curbing currency speculation but appear divided on how to approach the issue. The idea of such a tax was first mooted by Nobel Laureate economist James Tobin. It has been dubbed by some as “a Robin Hood Tax”.