Re: "The Register has asked Apple for a comment. ®"
And hope beats eternal in the heart of the Irish government, that if they delay, mumble and fudge for long enough, the whole sorry mess will resolve itself without pain. Of course, if it were Germany or France in the dock, then the outcome would be a compromise that let the country off the hook so long as there were some sort of moral victory for the Commission.
But that's not the case here. The French and German government have always wanted to stop "tax shopping", despite writing the rules that permit it, and now they are delighted to see the Commission demanding a full kilo of flesh from the Irish government. And the fact that Apple may have to pay is immaterial, if the Commission win, the real damage will be inflicted on Ireland's tax arrangements, and cause a resultant worsening on their balance of trade with the EU. In this situation the people of Greece can explain to the people of Ireland what happens to small countries on the periphery, when the chips are down.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
