High Road or High Horse?

| 21-02-2018 | Pieter de Kiewit |

I want to include you in my search for what is right. Newspapers don’t publish what is right but what sells (for the Dutch, why did the Volkskrant publish the story of Jillert Anema this week?). Politicians don’t work from their convictions but what gets them votes. Large companies pay low level taxes in countries where they don’t manufacture & sell, and no taxes where they do. Actions that benefit the environment are not implemented because it weakens our position in global markets.

Now I am not known for being politically active or interested. Many of my clients are corporates that are in the line of fire following the whole Panama Paper affair. So understanding what is happening would make sense, perhaps I could even form an opinion. So far, this is what I see and think:

• Newspapers created news by publishing what has been known for a long time. As far as I can oversee there were no convictions in The Netherlands based upon the Panama Papers;
• Poor countries are put in off side position when it comes to receiving taxes;
• Politicians created the rules and now shout from their high horse that corporates, following their rules, lack proper business ethics;
• Large corporates are able to hire the best tax lawyers and enjoy the largest tax cuts;
• Newspapers pick the corporates with the most prominent brands as an example and do not tell the story of both sides.

This equation has (too) many variables. I think Joris Luyendijk’s remarks about being immoral or amoral (https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2016/jan/18/big-banks-problem-ethics-morality-davos) are very relevant. The difference between “I follow the rules” and “I follow the rules and think about if they are right and enough”.

Given the fact that the revenue of the large corporates is bigger than the GDP of many countries, we cannot solve the problem locally. We cannot decide for other countries but we can decide for our own. Do we want to be on our high horse and economically weak? Would that be taking the high road? I am afraid I do not oversee the full picture. If I do, am I willing to accept the consequences as a consumer, entrepreneur and employer?

Would you?
Pieter

Pieter de Kiewit
[email protected] / +31 6 1111 9783

 

 

Pieter de Kiewit
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