G20 nations pledges to work together to tax ultra-rich

RIO DE JANERIO

G20 nations have agreed to work together to make the super-rich pay their taxes, but stopped short of a more substantial deal, according to a declaration adopted after a meeting of finance ministers in Rio de Janeiro.

The thorny topic of tackling tax-dodging billionaires dominated the two-day meeting in the Brazilian city, which will host the next G20 summit in November.

The initiative is a key priority for Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who heads this year's grouping, which includes the world's major economies, the European Union and the African Union.

Lula was hoping for a minimum tax on the moneyed elite, but the final statement represents a compromise on a topic that divided member states.

Brazil's Finance Minister Fernando Haddad said that "from a moral point of view it is important that the twenty richest nations consider that we have a problem, which is to have progressive taxation on the poor and not on the rich."

The United States and Germany dismissed the need for a global deal on taxing billionaires, an initiative which is backed by France, Spain, South Africa, Colombia and the African Union.

International Monetary Fund chief Kristalina Georgieva hailed the G20's position on "tax fairness."

"The shared vision of G20 Ministers on progressive taxation is timely and welcome, as the need to rebuild fiscal buffers while also attending to social and development needs involves difficult decisions in many countries," she said in a statement.