John Bufton (EFD), in writing. − I am totally against the EU sneaking in a form of direct taxation via the backdoor. The EU must not have any form of revenue raising powers, however small a percentage they may be and even if they do not accrue directly in the EU budget but via national treasuries. Creating a resource based upon VAT is the first step towards establishing a stealth tax without a single citizen of Europe bestowing revenue raising powers upon the EU.