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Lobbying isn't easier in a centralised power structure. When Amazon wanted favours from municipal governments, it held a competition to get them to lobby themse
by notahacker 6y ago
Lobbying isn't easier in a centralised power structure. When Amazon wanted favours from municipal governments, it held a competition to get them to lobby themselves to cut taxes and bend rules to earn the patronage of the corporation that was bigger and richer and more important than them.
- username90 6y agoHow come they failed to do just that in Europe? It isn't like some random multinational company can come to Sweden and demand special rules from their national government to do something there.
- guywhocodes 6y agoIsn't Sweden openly looking for special deals with data centers?
- notahacker 6y agoSweden is a lot larger than the average US municipality. Still, Ireland (population 6m) is so determined to continue collecting tiny amounts of tax from Amazon so long as it continues to base its EMEA HQ there, its government appealed an EU court ruling that Amazon owed it more tax...
- kwhitefoot 6y agoBecause the EU has rules against exactly this kind of thing. But companies do exactly what you have described in the EU, take a look at the financial shenanigans that Ireland and several big companies have been involved in.
- pjc50 6y agoApple pretty much bought Ireland's tax authorities. But, as people keep forgetting, Europe has giant multinationals and lobbyists of its own. I wouldn't presume to know who's on top politically in Sweden, but I imagine Saab (for example) have some influence.
- hef19898 6y agoWell, it worked for Luxembourg, Ireland and the Netherlands. it works between counties, it workd between states in Germany.