EURO MPs have been congratulated for backing Robin Hood and voting in favour of financial transaction taxes.
TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said: ‘Europe’s MEPs have backed Robin Hood.
“This is a very significant development which will be warmly welcomed by the unprecedented coalition of development, poverty, faith, environmental and union groups that have come together to promote the Robin Hood Tax.
‘Spending cuts are not the only answer to the deficit. It’s right that the banks and hedge funds who did so well from the boom years now make a proper contribution to clearing up the mess they have made.
‘Transaction taxes – or the Robin Hood Tax as we prefer to call them – can play a key role in making sure the right people pay for the crisis.’
The campaign now has 130,000 Facebook fans and 64,0
00 people have voted in favour of the tax on the website. 32,000 have signed up for e-mail updates and there are almost 3,000 followers on Twitter.
The only small number so far is 0.05% – the tiny amount banks should contribute to make the world a better place.
With events in Cardiff, and video letters sent from campaigners in David Cameron’s constituency, Witney, and Gordon Brown’s home turf Kirkcaldy, Robin Hood supporters have been busy making merry. In the US, Jonathan Mann made this brilliant music video about the tax.
The media has also been buzzing with news of goings-on in Sherwood. Nobel Prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz and 350 other economists have publicly supported the campaign.
Robin rides into Parliament
Thousands of people have emailed their MPs prompting them to attend a special briefing event at the House of Commons.
So far, nearly 1 in 5 Members of Parliament has expressed support for the tax. Welsh secretary Peter Hain was the first Cabinet Minister to lend public support. Conservative parliamentary candidate René Kinzett also showed support for Robin, as well as Labour MPs Jamie Reed and Andy Reed and Green Party Leader Caroline Lucas.
We need support in Westminster for the Robin Hood tax to happen, so ask your MP to sign up to support it.
A tiny tax of 0.05% from international bankers’ transactions could generate hundreds of billions of pounds every year to stop cuts in crucial public services in the UK and help fight global poverty and climate change. And it shouldn’t cost the public a penny.
www.robinhoodtax.org.uk
Mites in your tights? Itching to do more?
Go for it! If you have:
| 1 Minute: | Spread the word about the Robin Hood Tax – tell your friends. |
| 5 minutes: | Ask your MP to support the Robin Hood Tax by signing the early day motion in Parliament. |
| A bit more time | Watch the event from the Royal Society of Arts. On 9th March Economist Jeffrey Sachs, Richard Curtis and a discussion panel talked about the tax and took questions from the floor and via the Internet. The whole event can be seen on the The RSA website
For other events around the country visit the Robin Hood tax Facebook page. |
Related posts:
- Watch out on Saturday – Robin Hood and his merry men take to the streets of Manchester!
- Robin Hood tax on banks better than cuts in public services, says new campaign
- Mega bonus banks can afford to pay ‘Robin Hood tax’
- Welcome for Budget’s jobs and green measures – but what about the Robin Hood tax?
'Proud to serve the public’ is a North West TUC campaign to protect and promote public services in our Region. We believe public services are a vital part of the North West economy. They create jobs, stimulate growth and... 
Cllr Jonathan Reynolds, Labour, Stalybridge and Hyde
Jane Rogers, grandmother
