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Europe urges 'social' tax on banks worldwide
Europe on Friday backed Anglo-French moves to introduce a "social" tax on banks, insurers and markets, but Germany resisted calls for a levy on bankers' past bonuses as well.
European Union leaders endorsed a fresh call by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, supported by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, for the International Monetary Fund to examine a global so-called 'Tobin' tax.
The idea is among proposals they want considered to ensure that trillions of dollars of taxpayers' support during last year's financial crisis is repaid with a slice of boom-time profits.
The 27 EU member states agreed, after a two-day summit in Brussels, that an "economic and social contract" needs renewing "between financial institutions and the society they serve ... ensuring that the public benefits in good times and is protected from risk."