Dear Editor,

Bono's appearance hugging babies on the cover of "The Word" happens at the same time that U2 inc. have moved their royalties to the Netherlands to avoid paying tax on their royalties.

Tax is the basic contribution that members of a society pay to keep public services going, such as schools and hospitals. Although many companies avoid
tax just like U2 inc. does, the band members of U2 inc. have consistently portrayed themselves as altruistic saviours, taking on the cause of the third world, and at the same time getting free publicity.

I have always wondered about U2 inc.'s motives. When it came time for U2 inc. to pay the equivalent of normal income tax on their royalties that any working person would have to pay, U2 inc. simply moved their royalties to the Netherlands, even though they have no connection with the Netherlands. In fact, the tax that they would have paid would have been exempt for the first 250,000 euro of royalties, which is a much more generous tax-break than any ordinary person that I know gets.

Bono's appearance on the cover of your magazine for a photo-opportunity at the same time as their tax debacle seems to be working from a public relations point of view. Just the other day, someone who agreed with me about U2 inc.'s apparent hypocrisy started defending Bono's actions after reading about him in your paper. I would put it to you that this appearance is just another public relations photo-opp diffuse controversy at a time when U2 have shown their true colours and motivations. The price of the first-class ticket (I cannot see Bono travelling economy class) to Africa and the donation to the charity, if any, will be relatively small into the tax on 212 million per year of royalties that U2 is avoiding as their basic contribution to society.

Regards,

Patrick Mulrooney



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