A leading accountancy firm has suggested Scotland should take a leaf out of the tax books of other small nations.
Campbell Dallas LLP said systems in Belgium, Singapore and Ireland had helped those nations outperform the rest of the world in attracting foreign direct investment (FDI).
The FDI figures for the five years since the banking crisis in 2008 are revealed in a new study by international accountancy network UHY.
Campbell Dallas chairman Ian Williams said Scotland should “grab its slice of the pie”. He added: “We know that Belgium has attracted FDI equivalent to 91% of its GDP, while Singapore attracted the equivalent of 74% of its GDP and Ireland 44% of its GDP.
“On average, countries have attracted FDI worth 17% of their GDP in the five years since the credit crunch.
“Winning FDI provides an important boost to national economies, creating new jobs and tax revenues in the short term, and in the longer term improving productivity by helping to fund capital investment and making domestic companies more competitive.”
From April 2014, the main rate of corporation tax in the UK will fall from 22% to 21%, the lowest rate of any western economy and most G20 members.
Both Ireland and Singapore offer low corporation tax rates compared to other countries, as well as attractive arrangements for international groups. Singapore also offers a number of tax incentives for companies active in what are described as “target” sectors, including shipping, commodities trading, fund management and biotechnology.
Belgium has attracted net FDI equivalent to 91.4% of its GDP over the last five years.
That figure is second only to the US and China.
Belgium has been innovative in its use of tax legislation to attract international companies, and offers tax breaks for research and development and investment in capital goods, as well as fiscal incentives for hiring employees.