The US proposal has met resistance from Ireland

The US proposal for a global minimum tax rate of 15 percent for international companies has met resistance from Ireland. Irish Treasury Secretary Paschal Donohoe on Tuesday expressed "serious concerns" about US President Joe Biden's plans. Due to low tax rates, a large number of technology and pharmaceutical companies have their European headquarters in Ireland. In Dublin, therefore, concerns about their own tax revenues are growing. "We really have significant concerns about a global minimum tax at a level that would mean that only certain countries and economies of a certain size can benefit from it," Donohoe told Sky News. Concern about their own tax revenues is growing in Dublin, as the G7 finance ministers could decide on possible support for the project at a meeting in London next week. As the AFP news agency learned from negotiating circles, a political decision can be expected at the meeting. However, two other sources familiar with the negotiations said the G7 countries could also advocate a less drastic measure. The Biden government submitted the proposal for a global minimum tax last week in negotiations with the OECD and the G20. Germany and France, the largest economic powers in the EU, have already announced that they will support the initiative. The French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire described the global minimum tax of 15 percent last week as a "good compromise". The management of the International Monetary Fund also supports the proposal. In the financial sector, too, a global minimum tax is seen as necessary to prevent competition between individual states for the lowest tax rates. Such a "race to the bottom" leads to less tax revenue, which is then not available for other investments. For Biden, a global minimum tax would also be helpful to keep the US economy competitive. In order to finance his infrastructure and labor market program, which is said to cost around two trillion dollars, he wants to increase corporate tax in the United States.