Ten EU nations get go-ahead on financial transactions tax

BRUSSELS (AFP) -- The European Commission on Tuesday agreed a formal first step enabling 10 EU nations to launch a hotly contested Financial Transactions Tax slated to raise billions for the public purse.

After a plan to launch the tax across the European Union was scuttled by Britain and others, the EU executive proposed that 10 countries in favour, including France, Germany, Italy and Spain, be allowed to go ahead on their own.