The European Writers’ Council (EWC) has expressed “deep concern” about the Icelandic government’s plans to raise the VAT on books from 7% to 12%.
In a statement released at the council’s annual general assembly, EWC says it sees the raise as “devastating to the small Icelandic book market,” and predicts it “will have painful and irreversible effects on authors, publishers, booksellers, and on the reading culture of a nation known throughout the world for its rich and diverse literary heritage.”
The statement further points out the example of “your neighbouring countries like Norway, the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Faroe Islands which charge no VAT at all on books,” encouraging the Icelandic government to carry out the same policy.
The WEC (French: AISBL) is a non-profit federation of national and trans-national associations and unions of professional writers and literary translators in 34 European countries.
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