G20 leaders approve multinationals tax but wrangle over climate

Leaders of the G20 world's major economies approved a global minimum tax on the largest companies on Saturday, but were still haggling over the pressing issue of climate change. In the first major announcement of the two-day G20 summit in Rome, the bloc endorsed a "historic" agreement that would see multinationals subject to a minimum 15 per cent tax, said US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who attended the talks.  The deal would "end the damaging race to the bottom on corporate taxation", she said in a statement. The reform plan, already backed by almost 140 countries, seeks to end the practice of big corporates such as Apple and Google parent Alphabet of sheltering profits in low-tax countries.  But no consensus had yet emerged on a collective commitment on climate change, on the eve of the crucial COP26 conference starting in Glasgow on Sunday. Hosts Italy are pushing the G20 to collectively endorse the UN goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, one of the aspirations of the landmark 2015 Paris climate accords.  "From the pandemic, to climate change, to fair and equitable taxation, going it alone is simply not an option," Italian...