Antoine at the European Parliament

“TAXE” Special Committee

On June 1st, Antoine Deltour was received in Brussels at a public hearing held by the special committee of the European Parliament. The committee gathers different Members of Parliament (MEPs) investigating since February 2015 tax practices in Europe. Since that date, experts, policy makers, NGOs and multinationals were invited to present their views to the committee. Antoine accepted the invitation, in order to inform about his personal judicial situation and to remind the unacceptable and unfair situation created by the massive tax avoidance practiced by multinational corporations. He also reiterated the need to develop means to better defend and protect whistleblowers. As such, he indicated his concern about the draft European directive on trade secrets currently in preparation.

Massive support from MEPs

All Members of the European Parliament who took the floor publicly appreciated the courage of Antoine’s action. All agreed that, without his initial action and the echo it then had, the questions currently debated and the progress already made would perhaps not exist. The chairman of the special committee Alain Lamassoure (EPP Group, center-right) concluded the exchange with a clear message:

you initiated a new type of citizenship, deciding to break the law, bearing the consequences of it and provoking a debate that, if we act well and if we do our job of elected representatives, can serve the cause of general interest

The hearing by the committee of the European Parliament is a great recognition of the public utility work of the whistleblower Antoine Deltour.