Brian Keegan: Apple tax appeal does not add up for EU Commission        

Brian Keegan, director of public policy at Chartered Accountants Ireland.

Last week’s decision by the European Commission to appeal the Apple tax case has added further to the uncertain tax environment in which major multinational companies are operating.

Parking aside many of the legal arguments, the Apple case crystallised a particular political concern that some countries like Ireland use their tax systems unfairly to the advantage of the businesses that locate and operate there. The General Court of the European Union held, on the facts rather than the political assumptions, that this was not the case for Apple's operations in Ireland and that a claim for some €13bn in tax was not valid.