Agenda Volume 3 - Methodist Conference

59. Memorials to the Conference
M32 Tax Justice
The Birmingham District Synod (R)
(Present: 124. Voting: 97 for, 11 against),
believing that so-called ‘tax havens’
need to be phased out of our global
economic system, and that tax justice is
a key objective in the desperately-needed
national and international reform of that
system, welcomes the adoption of the
report on poverty and inequality by the
Conference of 2011 and the Conference’s
support for Church Action on Poverty’s
‘Close the Gap’ campaign, and asks the
Conference:
a) that this support be extended to
both Christian Aid’s ‘Trace the
Tax’ campaign which addresses tax
justice internationally and to the
international Tax Justice Network;
b) to give general support to the
objectives of the Methodist Tax
Justice Network (MTJN) currently
being set up, based in the
Birmingham District;
c) to urge all relevant sections of the
Connexional Team to give active
support to the issues being raised by
the MTJN as and when they are able;
d) in particular to encourage the World
Church Relationships team to raise
this issue in their communications
with the wider Methodist family and
to discuss how to take it forward as
a fundamental objective of mission
in today’s world.
Reply
The Conference welcomes the concerns of
the Birmingham District.
Of Equal Value: Poverty and Inequality in the
United Kingdom, a report to the Conference
of 2011, highlighted and supported the
Christian Aid campaign, ‘Trace the Tax’.
This campaign asks companies to disclose
the amount and the location of tax paid,
and calls on so-called ‘tax havens’ to end
the practice of obstructive secrecy which
prevents the collection of taxes owed in
other nations. Christian Aid estimates
this would raise $160 billion in tax for
developing countries; the tax recovered by
wealthier nations such as ours would be
many times higher.
The Joint Public Issues Team is already
working with Christian Aid, Church Action
on Poverty and the embryonic Methodist
Tax Justice Network to explore how
these issues might be further promoted.
The Beckly Lecture at the Conference
of 2012 was given by Richard Murphy,
co-founder of the Tax Justice Network.
World Church Relationships Partnership
Coordinators are raising these issues
with partner churches and welcome the
stimulus provided by the Methodist Tax
Justice Network.
The Conference therefore accepts the
memorial, asks the Methodist Council to
ensure that these issues are included
within the workplans of the Connexional
Team as resources allow, and recommends
that churches and individuals use the
study resource material from both the
‘Trace the Tax’ and the ‘Close the Gap’
792 Conference Agenda 2012