Tim Cook called “political garbage” his arguments for imposing a multi-million dollar penalty on Apple. Donald Trump gave him a nickname “The Tax Lady” Who “Hates America”. The Danish Liberal Margrethe Vestager (Glostrup, 56) on Tuesday, in a single day, she risked her entire legacy of 10 years of work as an iron lady capable of putting an end to the big North American technology companies. Ultimately, the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) ruled in his favour in two historic rulings as he prepares to say goodbye to the Community executive.
Chess supports two of the most controversial decisions adopted by Vestager as head of the Commission’s all-powerful Competition Service for two consecutive terms. On the one hand, the fine of 13 billion euros -14,300 million if we add the interests- which Brussels imposed on Apple in 2016 for evade paying taxes due in Europe between 2003 and 2014, take advantage of illegal tax benefits offered by Ireland.
The move supports Vestager’s crusade, which she began in her early years in Brussels, to combat tax evasion by multinationals. To do so, she has used a new interpretation of EU rules banning state aididentifying tax advantages with illegal subsidies. The Danish company has acted in the same way against other companies such as Fiat, Starbucks, Amazon or Ikea, although the CJEU has annulled some of its decisions. However, Apple’s case was the most important due to the volume of the penalty and it ended up winning.
[Google pierde su último recurso contra la multa de 2.400 millones de Bruselas por abusos monopolísticos]
The second decision ratified this Tuesday by the CJEU is the fine of 2,420 million euros that Brussels imposed on Google in 2017 for abusing its dominant position in order to confer an illegal advantage on its product and price comparison service (Google Shopping), to the detriment of its rivals. This is the first sanction by the Community Executive against the American giant and it sets a precedent on a global scale.
“This case was symbolic because it showed that even the most powerful technology companies could be held accountable. No one is above the law. This has prompted regulators and policymakers around the world to take a closer look at the activities of digital giants. The case of Google Shopping “Set a precedent and paved the way for other regulatory measures, including the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA),” Vestager said at a press conference that felt like a farewell.
A graduate in economics from the University of Copenhagen, Vestager joined the Competition Department in Brussels in 2014 from the Danish government. He holds the position of Deputy Prime Minister (number two of the social democrat Helle Thorning-Schmidt) and responsible for economic and internal affairsHis political career inspired the creators of the series. Borgen to bring the protagonist, Birgitte Nyborg, to life.
“The actress followed me for a day when I was Minister of Economy to see how it works,” Vestager explained. The creator of the series, Adam Prizehas never confirmed that the Competition Commissioner is the model Nyborg is based on, although he admits that he drew inspiration from real elements of Danish politics when designing his characters.
Appointed as Competition Commissioner by Jean-Claude Juncker, Vestager has introduced a radical change in the way her predecessor, the Spaniard, acted. Joaquin Almuniawho held this position between 2010 and 2014. The case that best illustrates the political differences between the two is precisely the Google case. For four years, Almunia tried three times to reach an agreed solution (without sanctions) with the IT giant. As soon as she arrived in Brussels, Vestager corrected the situation, suspended negotiations and began sending statements of objections with threats of multi-million dollar fines.
During its 10-year mandate, the Commission has imposedas the highest fines in its history for monopolistic abuses, most of them to Google and Apple. Vestager also approved the largest fine in EU history for a cartel. A total of €3.8 billion to truckmakers – including DAF, Volvo/Renault, Iveco and Daimler – for participating in an illegal agreement to agree price increases and share the market. With Ursula von der LeyenVestager has enjoyed less prominence, focusing her efforts on drafting the pioneering Digital Markets Act.
An elephant #Dress going on a trip to meet my newborn granddaughter.
This is already Aunt Margrethe’s No. 5 @vestager knitted for my grandchildren.
Thank you very much Margrethe and I wish everyone a good weekend! 🙏 pic.twitter.com/Vs2cYDdgCv– Věra Jourová (@VeraJurova) February 10, 2023
Vestager combines firmness and iron fist with a relaxed and approachable attitude, in addition to being an excellent communicator. One of her main hobbies is knitting elephants from colorful wool. – even at work meetings – which he occasionally auctions off for charity. He loves these animals because they live in matriarchal societies and “they are not mean but they remember,” as he put it. She also likes to bake bread and treats that she then takes to her office. She is married to a mathematics professor and has three daughters.
The Dane was a candidate for the Commission presidency by the liberal group in 2019, when von der Leyen was elected. She also competed last year with Nadia Calviño to lead the European Investment Bank (EIB), but was ultimately defeated by the Spaniard. In addition to the legal setbacks, her biggest setback in Brussels was French President Emmanuel Macron’s veto of her intention to appoint the UNITED STATES Fiona Scott Morton for the key position of chief competition economist because she is not European.
It is not yet known who will succeed Vestager in the competition portfolio. Von der Leyen considers awarding it to Teresa Ribera in order to distance her from the ecological transitionwhich is the destination desired by the third vice-president during her trip to Brussels. The reason for this would be that the European People’s Party is wary of Spanish “activism” and prefers that control of the European Green Deal be entrusted to one of its own commissioners, as published in Financial TimeAnother name that appeared in the pools is that of the Austrian candidate, Magnus Brunner, until now Minister of Finance.
