Bono, real name Paul Hewson, has championed the call for increases in aid to developing countries across the globe. But the man is a hypocrite and leads a life of double standards.

He is engaged in tax avoidance issues in his home country.

Article by Patrick Murphy

This tax avoidance is undermining the chance for the developing countries, he has been trying to get you and I to help, to claw their way out of crippling poverty. The worst thing is, he's getting away with it...........hopefully not for much longer.

Dublin, Ireland. February 25th 2009 saw a protest outside the Department of Finance, nothing unusual there, only this time it was to do with Ireland's most successful band. This protest saw members of the Debt and Development Coalition Ireland (DDCI) gatheringBono may campaign for a better deal for the world's poor, but his band are taking advantage of the same tax avoidance schemes that rob impoverished countries of billions. outside the Merrion Street offices to voice their concern over U2's tax avoidance. The coalition contains charitable organisations such as Trocaire and Oxfam (the world's largest charity organisation) and they had clearly swallowed enough of Bono's double standards. Nessa Ni Chasaide of Debt and Development Coalition Ireland said, “Bono may campaign for a better deal for the world's poor, but his band are taking advantage of the same tax avoidance schemes that rob impoverished countries of billions.”

In June 2005, Bono told The Belfast Telegraph: “Our publishing, which is about one third of our income, we have tax breaks on, and that's great and that's encouraged us to stay in Ireland and if that changes, it's not going to affect anything for U2” “You know, we pay a lot of tax by the way, a lot of tax, enormous, millions in tax”
Then six months later the Irish government passed a seemingly sensible change to the law stating that the amount of earnings that could remain untaxed under artist exemptions would be set at €250,000 per year. U2 weren't too happy about theYou know, we pay a lot of tax by the way, a lot of tax, enormous, millions in tax. government shifting the goalposts and decided six months down the line to move the publishing arm of their machine to Holland. The directors of the publishing company live and work there but the operations are carried out in Ireland and everywhere else too!

The relocation of U2's music publishing arm will have halved the taxes payed on the band's songwriting royalties and will now go to the Dutch government instead of going to their mother-country's government. By doing this Bono, while talking the good talk about helping the unfortunate nations of the world, has not put his money where his mouth is and is not helping the Irish government in their commitment to helping the developing countries of the world.

Nick Cohen from The Observer, asked lead guitarist David "the Edge" Evans, about the move to the land of tulips, windmills and legal marijuana "Of course we're trying to be tax-efficient. Who doesn't want to be tax-efficient?
we are totally tax compliant.
The Edge.

Christian Aid in 2007 issued a report called Death and Taxes: The True Toll of Tax Dodging. The world renowned development agency examined the impact of tax avoidance on the developing world; It mentioned Bono as one of theWho doesn't want to be tax-efficient? people responsible. If a group like Christian Aid were criticising the move, then surely Bono isn't playing fair. According to www.taxresearch.org.uk developing countries lose between €260 and €370 billion every year as a result of tax evasion. African Union, an organisation to help try and bring African countries together to combat common difficulties says that tax dodging by foreign companies costs it $150 billion a year - three times what it receives in aid.

After a year and a half of silence from the band they finally commented about the goings on in The Irish Times on February 27th 2009 “We haven’t commented on it,” says Bono. “And we don’t comment on it for a very good reason,” adds The Edge, “and that’s because it’s our own private thing. We do business all over the world, we pay taxes all over the world and we are totally tax compliant.”

Lets look at some figures. Before the move to Holland Bono’s company earned €81.4 million in 2005. Because of the generous tax breaks for artists at the time Bono would have had to pay only 12.5 percent corporate tax. A rate considerably less than that of full-time workers in the Irish state.

But it was still way too much for the man with houses in New York, Southern France and in the exclusive Killiney area of his native Dublin, very far from where he was reared. Then, as stated above Bono moved the registration of the publishing side of U2 to Holland, where it will only have to pay 5 percent tax on songwriting royalties. This tax, even though earned in all the countries where their music is sold will only be payable to the Dutch government. Hopefully they will find a good use for it.
Ireland, Holland and most of the so-called developed world could give much more development aid if Bono and people like him didn’t dodge their proper taxes by moving their companies around the world when it suited them to find better rates. You may argue that he is entitled to do it but can the hard-working people of their countries simply change the country where they pay tax?

So pay your appropriate tax Bono! And make an honest effort to help the people you want us to help. We'll help them...actually we already do with our tax money being sent all over the world by our respected governments but shame on you for not leading by example.

Sign the online petition today and help end this hypocrisy!

well...

232

...people have signed the petition so far!

Of course you can! Just leave your comment when you sign up. Your comment will then be displayed below with the rest: