16th June 2010

Alan Keen MP supports the Robin Hood Tax campaign

Last month Alan Keen MP joined Robin Hood Tax campaigners from across the world to take part in Make Finance Pay Week, a global event aimed at making the financial sector take responsibility for the global recession it helped cause.

As G20 finance ministers met informally in Berlin at the end of May, coalitions from England, Scotland, the United States, Canada, Germany, France and Australia came together to campaign for all G20 governments to introduce a Robin Hood Tax on banks that would raise hundreds of billions of dollars annually.

Alan Keen MP said:

“I fully support this campaign and I believe that this Robin Hood Tax on banks should be introduced and the money used to prevent cuts in public spending, tackle poverty at home and abroad, and help fight climate change by enabling developing countries to adapt to the effects of global warming”.

Owen Tudor, Head of European Union and International Relations at the TUC said:

“Make Finance Pay Week shows that the Robin Hood Tax campaign is now a global phenomenon, with events taking place in at least seven countries on three continents this week.

“We hope that many more people will join the hundreds of thousands of people across the globe who are urging their political leaders to hold banks accountable for the economic crisis they created.

“It’s time for the G20 heads of state to listen and agree a Robin Hood Tax to prevent large-scale cuts in public spending, meet their obligations to developing countries hurt as a result of the global recession, and raise the billions of dollars necessary to protect people from climate change.”

A global petition directed at the G20 heads of state was launched last week.  By signing the petition Make Finance Work, people can show the G20 leaders their support for a Robin Hood Tax. The Make Finance Pay Week events that took place last month include:

·        United States US unions and community-based economic justice groups, led by the National Peoples Action, took part in demonstrations in Washington DC targeted at the Wall Street lobby. Over 2,000 supporters turned up at the demonstrations, which will take place on K Street.

·        England Robin Hood Tax campaigners gathered at Albert Embankment directly opposite the Houses of Parliament on Wednesday 19 May at 10.45am to welcome the new Parliament and urge MPs to make a Robin Hood Tax on banks one of their top legislative priorities. Dressed as Robin Hood, campaigners marched from College Green across Westminster Bridge to Albert Embankment, holding giant mosaics of pictures of campaign supporters. Owen Tudor from the TUC is the spokesperson for the campaign.

• Scotland Robin Hood, Maid Marion, Friar Tuck and their merry men rode down Buchanan Street in Glasgow on Wednesday May 19 at 1030am, throwing Fairtrade chocolate coins to passers-by, urging them to support the Robin Hood Tax and 'be part of the world's greatest bank job.'

·        Germany Activists from the German Robin Hood Tax campaign (Die Robin Hood Steuer Kampagne) performed a stunt at Pariser Platz in front of the Brandenburger Tor in Berlin aimed at the heads of state and finance ministers taking in part in the G20 informal finance meeting in the city this week. The stunt saw campaigners dressed as Robin Hood and merry people attacking a bankers’ carriage loaded with big bags of money. A few activists playing Robin Hood boarded the carriage and started to reload small bags with money from the big ones.

• Canada Led by Oxfam Canada, campaigners called on the country’s government to support the Robin Hood Tax, with events taking place in major cities, including Toronto, Vancouver, Halifax, Saskatoon, Ottawa and St. John’s. The events took place on Wednesday 19 May. On Saturday 21 May from 7.30am to 9.30am (EDT), volunteers dressed in Robin Hood costumes also handed out informational business cards to early morning commuters at the city’s Union Station.

• Australia The Australian Robin Hood Tax coalition undertook a film/photo stunt with campaigners dressed as Robin Hood shooting arrows at a campaign target. The event took place in the Central Business District, Sydney on Thursday 20 May at 1.00pm (EST).

• France A wide coalition of NGOs and trade unions launched the petition Make Finance Work on Tuesday 18 May.