Reckitt Benckiser has rubbished claims made by Oxfam that it is engaging in tax avoidance. Oxfam accused RB of relocating its business headquarters in order to funnel profits through more favorable tax regimes.

“We strongly refute the assertion made Oxfam that RB’s decision made in 2012 to locate its regional ‘business headquarters’ in the Netherlands, Dubai and Singapore was driven by tax avoidance. Rather this re-structuring was motivated by our desire to ensure that our business was organised to be close to our customers,” said the company in a statement published on its corporate website.

“Relative to other multinational corporations domiciled in the UK, RB’s effective tax rate of 23 percent (in 2016) compares favourably with our peer group companies whose tax contributions range from 18 to 26 percent.

“We similarly strongly refute any link between our tax structure and the assertion that we seek to avoid taxes in developing countries that could otherwise have been invested in public health and education. None of our business operations are in any way linked to tax avoidance in developing countries.”