Tax Inspectors Say Irish Government Seen As Soft On Tax Evasion

by Jason Gorringe, Tax-News.com, London

28 May 2002

The Irish Department of Finance has rejected claims by the Revenue Commissioners that the government is soft on tax evasion.

At the annual conference of IMPACT, the public sector trade union which represents the Association of Tax Inspectors, a motion was passed warning that not enough is being done with regard to anti-tax evasion measures proposed by the Revenue Commissioners, and that this could colour the public's perception of the government's attitude towards tax evaders.

According to reports on Friday, IMPACT Executive Member, Peter Dockery questioned Finance Minister, Charlie McCreevy's commitment to providing tax inspectors with the necessary powers to clamp down effectively on tax fraud:

'At the DIRT enquiry the Revenue Commissioners blamed the Minister for Finance for failing to provide adequate legal powers to enable a crackdown on bogus non-resident deposit accounts,' he told delegates, observing that: 'Under the most charitable interpretation, the Revenue Commissioners and the Minister were not on the same wavelength when it came to dealing with tax evasion.'

However, the Department of Finance hit back at IMPACT's claims at the weekend, expressing surprise at the way that the matter is being dealt with by the trade union, and stating that there is 'no outstanding shopping list for extra Revenue powers' to the best of the Department's knowledge.

The 1999 Finance Act gave tax inspectors 'very strong powers' to investigate tax evasion, a Finance Ministry spokesman commented on Saturday. Mr McCreevy has also previously sanctioned more than 300 new posts to enhance the Revenue Commissioners' prosecution unit, he added.

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