[Article] Banks face grilling in €4bn tax probe

Victor

Oooh, I'd love the rubber glove treatment to be generously handed out here.

http://home.eircom.net/content/unison/national/1703503?view=Eircomnet

Banks face grilling in €4bn tax probe
From:The Irish Independent
Monday, 20th October, 2003
Brian Dowling Political Correspondent

Dail watchdog planning 'DIRT-style' investigation into status of Isle of Man accounts

THE Public Accounts Committee (PAC) is gearing up for a new 'DIRT-style' investigation into the extent of offshore tax evasion after revelations that up to €4bn of Irish money was salted away in the Isle of Man at the height of the economic boom.

Last night PAC chairman John Perry said he was seriously concerned at the latest report and it reinforced his determination to call in top executives from banks and financial institutions for questioning on the full extent of funds being placed offshore by Irish citizens.

"There are very serious questions to be answered by the banks and other financial institutions. No one could tolerate a situation where it appears that some banks may have been complicit in facilitating tax evasion," he said.

Responding to a report in yesterday's Sunday Independent that €4bn was placed in Irish banks and financial institutions in the Isle of Man in 1998 and 1999, Mr Perry said this raised the question of whether funds were also placed in other tax havens or even with Irish subsidiaries in mainland UK.

The latest report comes after disclosures at the PAC last week that the Revenue Commissioners have recovered over €100m from individuals placing funds in a trust fund scheme operated by the Bank of Ireland in Jersey.

Revenue's offshore assets group is also tracking the dealings of other financial institutions in the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.

Yesterday's report said that KPMG had examined the operations of the Isle of Man subsidiaries of six Irish financial institutions and found they collectively held over €4bn in deposits from Irish people in 1999.

According to the report, Bank of Ireland (IoM) had €1.2bn; AIB (IoM) had €1bn; Anglo-Irish Bank (IoM) had €595m; Ulster Bank (IoM) had €366m; Irish Nationwide (IoM) had €306m; and Irish Permanent (IoM) had €262m.

Mr Perry said the PAC had the power to compel banks and financial institutions to attend hearings but he was hoping that it would not be necessary to resort to using that power.

"There is obviously an issue of serious public concern here about the extent to which the subsidiaries of major Irish financial institutions may have assisted people here to evade their taxes by providing them with a range of offshore banking services. I will be writing to financial institutions to invite them to attend hearings at the Committee and I hope they will accept that invitation," Mr Perry said.

While not all of the money held by Irish subsidiaries in the Isle of Man would have been siphoned away to avoid the Revenue, it is almost certain that a substantial portion of it was placed there to evade taxes.