Tim Cook, the Apple CEO, has described as “wrongheaded” and “maddening” the European Commission’s finding this week that Ireland’s tax incentives to the tech giant were illegal.
The EC ruled Tuesday that Ireland gave Apple 13 billion euros ($14.5 billion) of illegal tax incentives, and ordered Dublin to recover that money. Both Ireland, which has made low corporate taxes a cornerstone of its financial policy, and Apple, one of hundreds of U.S. companies with operations in Ireland, have said they’ll appeal the ruling. Cook, speaking to RTE, the Irish broadcaster, dismissed the idea the tax benefits were illegal and expressed confidence the ruling would eventually be overturned.
Here’s more from his conversation with RTE:
It’s maddening. It’s disappointing. It’s clear that this comes from a political place. It has no basis in fact or in law, and unfortunately it’s one of those things we have to work through.
When you’re accused of doing something that is so foreign to your values, it brings out an outrage in you, and that’s how we feel. Apple has always been about doing the right thing.
Cook also dismissed the EC’s contention that Ireland’s “selective treatment” allowed Apple to pay an effective corporate tax rate of 1 per cent on its European profits in 2003 down to 0.005 per cent in 2014.
