MOSCOW, Sept 27, 2007 (AFP) - The Russian subsidiary of Pricewaterhouse Coopers, an international accounting firm, lost an appeal on Wednesday against a back tax bill of 10.4 million dollars (7.4 million euros).

A Moscow commercial court turned down PWC's appeal against a court ruling from last year for the company to pay Russian tax authorities for unpaid taxes and fines dating back to 2002.

BOURNEMOUTH, England, Sept 26, 2007 (AFP) - British Prime Minister Gordon Brown hinted Wednesday that he plans to close tax loopholes enjoyed by private equity groups, as Britain awaits a government report on the contentious issue.

Speaking at his Labour Party's annual conference, Brown indicated to activists that he would take action over the loopholes, which are strongly criticised by trade unions -- bodies which provide a large chunk of his party's funding.

STOCKHOLM, Sept 18, 2007 (AFP) - Sweden's year-old conservative government said Tuesday it would cut its high income taxes by a further 10.8 billion kronor (1.61 billion dollars, 1.16 billion euros) as an incentive for employment.

'Most people in work will have approximately 1,000 kronor (150 dollars, 108 euros) per month more in take-home pay,' Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt said Tuesday as he presented his government programme to the opening session of parliament.

MOSCOW, Sept 10, 2007 (AFP) - Russia is set to introduce taxes of up to 25 percent on grain exports, the Kommersant daily reported Monday quoting an official, but experts warned such a move would undermine struggling farmers.

'The order to complete all necessary documentation for product intervention and introducing export taxes was received by the ministry two weeks ago,' the daily's source said, adding that 'streamlining the strategy of grain market intervention and starting on it is due this week.'

TOKYO, Sept 7, 2007 (AFP) - Japan's economic recovery remains intact despite recent tumult on global markets, but urgent efforts are needed to tackle the nation's swelling public debt, the new finance minister said Friday.

'The Japanese economy will be able to keep on its economic recovery path, supported by private sector demand,' said Fukushiro Nukaga, a former defence agency chief who was given the finance post in a cabinet reshuffle last month.

ROME, Sept 4, 2007 (AFP) - The Vatican's secretary of state lashed out Tuesday at critics of tax breaks for the Italian Church, accusing them of seeking to 'destroy the credibility' of religious institutions.

'Those who launch these attacks should reexamine their strategy of denigration,' Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican's second highest ranking official, said in an interview with the Italian weekly Famiglia Christiana.

The criticism would harm not only Italy's image, 'but also impact those who benefit from Church's social and spiritual work,' he added.

ROME, Aug 31, 2007 (AFP) - A top official in the Italian Catholic Church decried 'attacks' on the Church on Friday amid growing controversy over a proposed European Commission probe into its alleged property tax advantages.

'Someone wants to sling mud at the Church in making believe that it enjoys privileges,' Secretary-General of the Bishops Conference Giuseppe Betori said.

'We feel attacked, and we can't understand why the Church is not perceived as performing a service to society. We are shocked,' he added.

ROME, Aug 29, 2007 (AFP) - Italian politicians rallied behind the Catholic Church on Wednesday following news that EU regulators could open a formal probe into tax breaks the Italian Church enjoys.

Prime Minister Romano Prodi had not yet commented, but two ministers in his centre-left government spoke out against the inquiry.

Justice Minister Clemente Mastella, a centrist Catholic, expressed concerns over the potential investigation while his colleague in charge of infrastructure, Antonio Di Pietro, denounced it.

ROME, Aug 28, 2007 (AFP) - News that the European Union could soon open an investigation into tax breaks that the Italian Church enjoys in the property market sparked a fierce political debate in Italy Tuesday.

'It's good news that the European Commission is gathering information on competition violations,' Green party senator Natale Ripamonti told ANSA agency.

'Hopefully our pro-European country will dispense with these privileges,' he added. The Green party forms part of the radical wing of the current ruling coalition.

BRUSSELS, Aug 28, 2007 (AFP) - EU competition regulators are looking into whether tax breaks for the Catholic Church in Italy break EU state aid rules after receiving complaints, a spokesman said Tuesday.

'We have addressed the Italian authorities and asked them for information about this,' European Commission spokesman for competition issues Jonathan Todd told journalists.

Todd, who declined to say where the complaints that triggered the action had come from, said that tax breaks in question concerned the Church's commercial real estate activities.

PARIS, Aug 24, 2007 (AFP) - The French government on Friday unveiled a new tax break for homebuyers to replace a measure promised by President Nicolas Sarkozy during his election campaign but struck down as unconstitutional.

The Constitutional Council earlier this month ruled that the tax break which applied to all first-time home purchases dating back to five years favored one group of taxpayers in a disproportionate way.

The new measure will now apply to all home purchases made after May 6, when Sarkozy was elected.

COPENHAGEN, Aug 21, 2007 (AFP) - Denmark's Liberal-Conservative government on Tuesday unveiled plans to cut income taxes as of 2008, improve the national welfare system and improve quality in the public sector.

The initiative called for 10 billion kroner (1.34 billion euros, 1.81 billion dollars) in annual tax cuts to boost Danes' incentive to work amid a labour shortage.

Unemployment has been steadily falling in Denmark for several years, and reached 3.5 percent in June, its lowest level in decades.

WASHINGTON, Aug 8, 2007 (AFP) - US President George W. Bush warned Democratic lawmakers Wednesday that he would use his veto power to strike down any legislation raising taxes or increasing federal spending.

'I will use the veto to keep your taxes low and to keep federal spending under control,' Bush said from the Treasury Department after meeting with economic advisers.

PARIS, Aug 7, 2007 (AFP) - The Marshall Islands have been removed from a watchlist of 'uncooperative' tax havens after the government of the Pacific nation pledged to improve transparency, the OECD said on Tuesday.

The list, run by the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, is designed to pressure tax havens into changing harmful practices.

Three European jurisdictions remain on the OECD list, namely Andorra, Liechtenstein and Monaco.

STOCKHOLM, Aug 1, 2007 (AFP) - A congestion charge came into force on Wednesday to reduce pollution in Stockholm but at the height of the holiday period in Sweden it was difficult to assess its impact on traffic.

'Our technicians have informed us that the system is working properly,' Birger Hoeoek, an executive at the Swedish Road Administration, told Swedish public television (SVT) early Wednesday.

SOFIA, July 30, 2007 (AFP) - Bulgaria's government said Monday it had decided to introduce a flat tax of 10 percent in 2008 for all businesses to combat the widespread unreported income and tax evasion.

The measure 'will boost competitiveness and prompt the companies working in the underground economy to come out in the open,' Economy Minister Petar Dimitrov told Sega daily newspaper Monday.

Last October, the government cut corporate tax by five points to 10 percent, making it the lowest in the European Union that the country joined this year.

STOCKHOLM, July 26, 2007 (AFP) - In a measure aimed at tackling traffic congestion and cutting pollution in Stockholm, motorists will have to dig into their pockets each time they enter or exit the capital from August 1.

The goal is to reduce traffic next year by 10 to 15 percent in and out of the city limits, Birger Hoeoek, executive at the Swedish Road Administration (Vaegverket), told AFP.

The Vaegverket is responsible for the nation's road transport system.

PARIS, July 24, 2007 (AFP) - The OECD said Tuesday it had dropped Liberia from its list of uncooperative tax havens after authorities there pledged to improve financial transparency and to exchange information on tax matters.

Four jurisdictions, Andorra, Liechtenstein, Monaco and the Marsall Islands, remain on the list, which was published in April 2002.

Since then, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, 33 jurisdictions have taken steps to curb harmful tax practices and polices and have been removed from the list.

MUNICH, Germany, July 24, 2007 (AFP) - A small business owner tangled up in German bureaucracy will go to court against the authorities Wednesday over a demand she pay more than two billion euros in back taxes.

The regional court in the southern city of Munich said Tuesday that the snack shop owner was suing the state of Bavaria to cover the horrendous cost of hiring a tax advisor, who billed her for a percentage of the taxes she purportedly owed.

DUBLIN, July 23, 2007 (AFP) - Ireland may impose a clean-up tax on chewing gum if a voluntary agreement with manufacturers fails to show adequate results, the new Green Party environment minister John Gormley warned on Monday.

Gormley, whose party entered government for the first time in Prime Minister Bertie Ahern`s new coalition following the May general election, said he would not hesistate to 'implement a levy if necessary.'