The
Innovation
Award 2015 Nominee
Innovation
Award 2015 Nominee
Luxembourg Leaks
Mar Cabra on behalf of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists
64 European journalists from 26 different news organisations across Europe
64 European journalists from 26 different news organisations across Europe
ICIJ’s “Luxembourg Leaks” probe pulled back the curtain on Luxembourg’s system of secret tax rulings for big corporations from around the world. ICIJ and its media partners unearthed two caches of documents involving more than 370 companies that sought special tax deals with the help of the “Big 4” accounting firms.
The investigation, also known as "Lux Leaks," found that Luxembourg had systematically granted drastic tax reductions that damaged national treasuries in Europe and beyond. Some companies enjoyed tax rates of 1%.
Sixty-four European journalists from 26 European news outlets served as the heart of ICIJ’s team. To help reporters access 28,000 pages of files, ICIJ built a pan-European “virtual newsroom,” where journalists were able to search the documents and communicate safely. Eventually, the majority of the files were made public through an online interactive application, at a time when EU investigators were struggling to get such details from Luxembourg.
These stories had unprecedented impact in Europe and worldwide – prompting public protests, parliamentary debate in numerous countries, and an official investigation. The New York Times called them a “rising furor” across Europe. The new European Commission president and former Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker faced a “no-confidence” vote in the European Parliament. The Commission said it would use the documents uncovered by ICIJ in its probe of Luxembourg’s tax practices and it expanded its inquiry to all member states. After months of resistance, Luxembourg finance minister Pierre Gramegna agreed to disclose the tax ruling information the EU had requested and called Lux Leaks a “game changer.”
The investigation, also known as "Lux Leaks," found that Luxembourg had systematically granted drastic tax reductions that damaged national treasuries in Europe and beyond. Some companies enjoyed tax rates of 1%.
Sixty-four European journalists from 26 European news outlets served as the heart of ICIJ’s team. To help reporters access 28,000 pages of files, ICIJ built a pan-European “virtual newsroom,” where journalists were able to search the documents and communicate safely. Eventually, the majority of the files were made public through an online interactive application, at a time when EU investigators were struggling to get such details from Luxembourg.
These stories had unprecedented impact in Europe and worldwide – prompting public protests, parliamentary debate in numerous countries, and an official investigation. The New York Times called them a “rising furor” across Europe. The new European Commission president and former Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker faced a “no-confidence” vote in the European Parliament. The Commission said it would use the documents uncovered by ICIJ in its probe of Luxembourg’s tax practices and it expanded its inquiry to all member states. After months of resistance, Luxembourg finance minister Pierre Gramegna agreed to disclose the tax ruling information the EU had requested and called Lux Leaks a “game changer.”