Euro-Parliament urges tax on financial operations
(STRASBOURG) - The European Parliament on Wednesday called for a worldwide tax on financial transactions that would help pay for the economic crisis and could aid the fight against global warming.
"The European Union should come up with a common position... on options for the financial sector to make a just and substantial contribution" through such a tax, read the text of a resolution by the parliament.
If a global agreement is impossible, the EU should "elaborate its own strategy", EU lawmakers added in their non-binding resolution.
They also called on the European Commission to compile a report on the impact of the tax before the next summit of G20 nations in Toronto in June.
The idea of a tax on financial transactions, also known as a "Tobin tax" after Nobel laureate James Tobin, has gained momentum following the massive bailouts of top banks in Europe and the United States with taxpayers' money.