Curbing increasing inequality and the ecological crisis requires changes to the ground rules of the economy.
Fingo promotes a sustainable economy through advocacy for tax justice, corporate responsibility legislation and the role of the private sector in sustainable development. In addition, Fingo provides the societal debate with inspiring visions for a sustainable and fair economic system from around the world and proposes concrete ways of promoting the transition to a sustainable economy.
What are our demands?
Finland must promote fair taxation in development cooperation, international tax policy and national legislation.
States’ own tax revenues are a significant resource for financing the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To support the strengthening of the tax base of developing countries, a fair international tax policy is needed, with equal access to participation in its formulation ensured for all countries.
The international community must take joint action to eradicate aggressive tax planning and illicit capital flight. It is also important to ensure the tax responsibility of investments supported by development cooperation funds. Moreover, the external impacts of national tax measures must be identified and action must be taken to eliminate any negative impacts.
Finland must without any delay enact an ambitious corporate responsibility act based on the duty of care concerning human rights defined by the UN.
The Finnish Government has made a commitment to drawing up a corporate responsibility act based on the duty of care imposed on enterprises and to promoting a corresponding aim in the EU.
In addition to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the corporate responsibility act must strengthen respect for human rights in international business, prevent human rights violations caused by business, and promote the legal protection of victims and access of stakeholders to influence concerning the realisation of human rights in international business. The scope of the act must cover different types of enterprise extensively, and the act must ensure efficient implementation, monitoring and advice for enterprises.
Finland and the EU must transition to a climate-sustainable economy of wellbeing and, in this transition, also take account of the perspective of developing countries and global justice.
The problems of the current economic system are generally recognised, and the aim for a more ecologically and socially sustainable economy is shared widely in Finland as well as in the EU. The transition to a sustainable economy requires reform in production and consumption patterns as well as in economic institutions. In a mutually dependent world, a sustainable economy must be built by taking global perspectives into account. Determined actions must be taken to tackle the structures of the economic system that create inequality and are unfair, and access to wellbeing must be ensured for the most vulnerable people and communities.