| HMRC admits paying for stolen data |
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| Written by Adrie van der Luijt | |
| Sunday, 24 February 2008 | |
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The UK's HM Revenue and Customs has admitted paying an informant for stolen data on accounts held at Liechtensteins' LGT bank.
The British tax authority refused to say how much it had paid the individual for supplying data on British citizens with accounts in the Alpine tax haven, but said it took tax evasion very seriously. Liechtenstein and Switzerland have both criticised an ongoing operation by the German authorities, back by the Conservative German government, investigating tax evasion by wealthy Germans via Liechtenstein and Switzerland. It is believed that a disgruntled former employee of the Liechtenstein bank, previously given a suspended sentence for stealing data in 2002, passed on a DVD to the German tax authorities in return for millions of Euros. The Financial Times reported on Sunday that the British authorities were offered information on around 100 British tax payers with secrets accounts in the tiny principality as early as 2005. The paper alleges that the British authorities waited until the German government had admitted paying for the stolen data until it agreed to pay £100,000 in return for information. Liechtenstein's acting head of state, prince Alois, stepped into the row earlier this week during a press conference by condemning the German authorities' treatment of "a friendly neighbour". The Swiss Bankers Association apologised earlier this week after its president likened the German tax investigation to the activities of the Nazi secret police, the Gestapo. Germany's Conservative government is fighting a key state election and polls show that its handling of "fat cat" business executives is proving very popular. The American Internal Revenue Services (IRS) said earlier this week that it had come into posession of data on American citizens with secrets accounts in Liechtenstein. The latest revelations, which prove that the UK tax authorities under Labour Chancellor Alistair Darlin paid for stolen goods under the banner of protection the public interest against tax evasion, are likely to cause further embarassment to an already increasingly damaged Brown government. Related articles
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