France urges Luxembourg to bring tax laws into line with EU norms

France is urging Luxembourg to bring its tax laws into line with European Union standards in the wake of revelations about sweet tax deals for big companies.

French President Francois Hollande said Friday that "it's insufferable to see big corporations escaping from this while small and medium enterprises are obliged to pay."

"I call on Luxembourg to go as far as possible in the direction of this harmonization" with EU standards, he said after talks with Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel.

Bettel said other EU countries have tax systems similar to Luxembourg and that it is important to "analyze the situation in all 28 countries, and that we find common rules for all 28 countries."

The EU has pledged to crack down on tax rulings favoring big firms.