Fragile recovery
In an opinion article in the Fi-nancial Times, he also said more was needed to spur the euro-zone's chronically underperforming economy, which he said was threatening the "uneven and fragile" global recovery.
"It is the weakness of European Union growth that lies at the root of the imbalances," he wrote. "The euro zone has grown by 3 percent or more in just one of the last 10 years, while the US has averaged more than 3 percent."
Ministers were to discuss Dutch ideas for "reducing the administrative burden on companies" yesterday.
Zalm signaled he expected no action on Sarkozy's calls to punish new EU members in Eastern Europe that lure jobs from the west with low taxes.
Sarkozy -- who is expected to step down in November to bid for the leadership of French President Jacques Chirac's conservative party -- stuck to his guns on Friday. He noted that such fears could turn public opinion against the EU just as voters are being asked to approve a controversial EU constitution.
"Eight of the countries concerned will have to go through a referendum," he said. "Think about that."
Zalm said he would first see whether there was support for harmonizing the EU's corporate tax base, a commission proposal that raises hackles in Britain, Ireland and other low-tax countries -- each of which has a veto.
"If that question is answered with `no,' then all the other questions are irrelevant," Zalm said.
France and Germany are the biggest advocates of minimum taxes to prevent poaching of investment, especially by the low-wage eastern countries that joined the EU last May.
Commission figures show taxes in the east average 21.5 percent, compared to 31.4 percent in the old EU of 15 countries.
The new members argue their lower taxes are necessary to counter disadvantages such as poor infrastructure or distance from major markets.
Many look to Ireland as an example, which boomed through the 1990s through a combination of low taxes and EU funds. Ireland still has the EU's lowest corporate tax rates at 12.5 percent.
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