A European Union plan to tax Google, Facebook and other internet firms, risks failure because a handful of member states announced their opposition. Which states and why?

It could be any nations that was promised jobs from Google.

Ireland for instance has been paying loads to build infrastructure for these companies, also giving them a basically tax-free environment. The Irish government is betting on a network effect and some “spillovers” alone - that is how desperate they are.

Honestly, it is so easy to divide Europe by just showing some money to a different nation each time that there is no way for the EU to reach a general consensus on a taxation plan for these companies.

This text was originally published in quora.