Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

82. To ask the Minister for Finance the measures he and the Department of Justice and Equality are taking to ensure that a situation, such as that recently revealed by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists report on the HSBC Private Bank in Geneva, does not occur again. [8364/15]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

In other written answers to questions from the Deputy today I have outlined the Revenue Commissioners response to the HSBC revelations. As outlined in Ireland's Road Map for Tax Competitiveness, published with Budget 2015, Ireland is maintaining its commitment to ensuring an open and transparent tax regime. One of the key ways we are doing this is through our commitment to the exchange of information between revenue authorities, in particular the automatic exchange of information. The automatic exchange of information between tax authorities is a vital tool in the worldwide fight against tax fraud and tax evasion and Ireland, along with our EU partners, has led the way in the promotion of this new global standard. At the October Ecofin, Ireland welcomed the political agreement on the recent revision to the Directive on Administrative Cooperation (which provides for automatic exchange of information within the EU), and we have legislated for it in Finance Act 2014. This was based on the new OECD Common Reporting Standard.

Ireland  welcomed the G20 and OECD endorsements of the new Common Reporting Standard for automatic exchange of tax information in 2014, and we are one of the countries that have committed to early implementation of this standard. As a member of this Early Adopters Group Ireland welcomes all efforts to increase tax transparency at both international and EU level. Ireland was the fourth country in the world to sign a FATCA agreement with the United States in 2012, which was the inspiration for this new Common Reporting Standard. During our EU Presidency in 2013 Ireland prioritised work in the area of tax fraud and evasion and made significant progress, notably in brokering agreement on Ecofin council conclusions on a Commission Action Plan on Tax Fraud and Evasion.     

In addition the results of the most recent Global Forum comprehensive analysis of how countries exchange tax information with each other, confirm that Ireland meets the highest international standards. The report confirms, following a forensic peer review, that the Irish system for the exchange of tax information is as good as anywhere in the world, and better than most. Finally our network of tax treaties also provide for full mutual information exchange with our treaty partners.

The Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation (GBFI) is charged with investigating serious and complex fraud matters and has resources and expertise to carry out this function. The Garda authorities have advised that to date no complaint has been received by the GBFI in relation to the specific matters referred to by the Deputy, nor has assistance been requested from any other agency in this regard. 

The GBFI works closely with other bodies with relevant enforcement functions, including the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement (ODCE), the Central Bank, Revenue Commissioners, and the Competition Authority, with staff of the GBFI seconded to both the ODCE and the Competition Authority.