Mr. Niall Cody:

Since the 1990s a considerable amount of work has been done on the EU savings directive. The directive has evolved and developed. During our Presidency, two member states had a difficulty with automatic exchange of information under the directive. Their problems were primarily linked to the fact that their neighbours were exempt from it. These problems have now been solved and Europe is agreeing an arrangement with Switzerland, Lichtenstein, Andorra and San Marino to increase the exchange of information. The game changer is the common reporting standard, which is driven at OECD level. The Swiss have signed up to that and it is now coming. This is a major development in terms of shining the light on transparency and the flow of money.