Pascal Saint Amans

The session opened with a purposeful video address by the Chair, Pascal Saint-Amans. He reminded the audience of the historic trajectory that brought the OECD and the UN to the centre of international tax governance: an early OECD-led technical architecture that expanded into global standards, the later emergence of UN activity driven by developing country concerns over source taxation, and the dramatic acceleration of multilateral work once harmful tax practices and tax transparency became central policy problems. He urged participants to rise above rhetorical polarities and to recognise two complementary facts — (i) the OECD’s consensus-driven work has produced binding changes for those who opt in via the Inclusive Framework, and (ii) the UN’s intergovernmental route, while majoritarian and politically charged, can set broader agendas and address issues such as carbon taxation and competition policy that the OECD may be less well placed to lead. In essence, the Chair called for pragmatic cooperation between the two systems, clarity of agenda, and an end to polarising rhetoric so that technical expertise and political legitimacy can be combined to deliver workable global outcomes.