BIAC Comments on the Release of the OECD Report on “Tackling Harmful Alcohol Use: Economics and Public Health Policy”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paris, 13 May 2015 – BIAC commends the focus of the OECD on the importance of health for the success and the productivity of our economies. “We need to know more about the effectiveness of policies and innovative solutions that support the health of our people and workforce”, said Bernhard Welschke, BIAC Secretary General.

In this context, the recently launched OECD study on Tackling Harmful Alcohol Use: Economics and Public Health Policy could be seen as a missed opportunity, as the report struggles to offer a comprehensive analysis of the reasons and – most important – the solutions for alcohol-related harm. BIAC members appreciate the challenge to come to conclusions with a limited set of data and projections, but it is important not to jump to narrow conclusions, such as the emphasis on prices, by increasing taxes and setting minimum prices, and greater regulation of advertising as a way to reduce harmful consumption.

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Business Priorities for Regional Integration in Southeast Asia: Five Steps for Economic Integration
Paris, 25 March 2015 – “Moving towards competitive markets is a prerequisite for investor confidence, job creation, and economic growth”, said BIAC Chairman Phil O’Reilly at the OECD Southeast Asia Regional Forum in Jakarta, commenting on a joint Business Statement by BIAC, the Indonesian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (KADIN), and the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN BAC).

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Paris, 23 March 2015 – “Our economies cannot afford to miss out on the contributions of talented women entrepreneurs, if they should only come close to reaching their full potential”, said BIAC Secretary-General Bernhard Welschke on the occasion of the launch of a report on Putting ALL our ideas to work: Women and Entrepreneurship.

In June 2014, BIAC and Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (Deloitte Global) led a discussion on the barriers facing women entrepreneurs, in particular to determine if there were special considerations for women entrepreneurs including their access to finance. BIAC and Deloitte Global release today the conclusions of this successful event, which brought together leading women entrepreneurs, government officials and high level OECD representatives. The event also featured the findings of an earlier business survey report Putting ALL our Minds to Work: An Assessment  which looked at steps business is taking to retain and advance talented women within their ranks.

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19 January 2015, Paris – “Considering the uneven recovery of OECD economies and serious imbalances in world markets, private sector-led growth has to be a top priority”, said BIAC’s Chair Phil O’Reilly today on the occasion of BIAC’s annual consultation with OECD Ambassadors.

Presenting the three pillars of the private sector’s growth agenda for 2015: Investment, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, O’Reilly added that: “The agenda for growth can only succeed if there is trust. Trust in business, trust in governments, and trust in the OECD. More needs to be done by all of these parties to show that, with the right conditions in place, business can be a dynamic force for the success of our economies and the wellbeing of citizens.”

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16 December 2014, Paris – “Today the world’s leading donors have made a commendable step towards using aid more efficiently and effectively while at the same time catalyzing more private investment into developing countries”, commented Thomas de Man, Chair of the BIAC Development Task Force, on the occasion of the High Level Meeting of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC). “This is a crucial element of the Post-2015 development agenda”, he added.

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Paris, 28 October 2014 – Participants to the Forum on Tax Administration (FTA) meeting on 23 and 24 October in Dublin agreed that ever greater cooperation is necessary to implement the results of the OECD project on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting and Automatic Exchange of Information.

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Paris, 8 October 2014 – “Unless we find better ways to boost the financial means for achieving sustainable development, global efforts for a Post-2015 Development Agenda will fall short of expectations”, BIAC Secretary-General Bernhard Welschke said yesterday.

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Paris, 17 September 2014 – BIAC responds to the first set of BEPS consensus reports and recommendations released by the OECD on seven areas of the BEPS Action Plan.

The OECD released yesterday its first recommendations for a co-ordinated international approach to combat tax avoidance under the OECD/G20 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Project (BEPS).

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Melbourne, 10 September 2014 – Daniel Funes de Rioja, President of the International Organisation of Employers (IOE), and Phil O’Reilly, Chair of BIAC, addressed the G20 Labour and Employment Ministers in Melbourne today as part of the B20 delegation, pointing to the potential of private sector-led growth for job creation.

At the meeting, Steve Sargent, member of the Australian B20 Leadership Group, and coordinating Chair of the B20 Human Capital Task Force, led the business presentations, emphasising key B20 recommendations including the need for structural flexibility, consistent and effective business regulation and for dismantling the barriers inhibiting entrepreneurs from starting and growing businesses and creating jobs.

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Paris, 21 July 2014 – BIAC welcomes the OECD Commentary on Common Reporting Standard (CRS) that was released today as another milestone in the OECD’s considerable effort to assist jurisdictions in implementing consistently the regime for Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI).

In September 2013, the G20 Leaders committed to automatic exchange of information as the new global standard of cooperation between tax administrations, and fully supported the OECD work aimed at presenting such a single global standard in 2014. The substantial progress made this year will help facilitate bringing into effect relatively soon the procedures for identifying customers’ tax residences and exchanging relevant financial information between tax authorities.

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