Her Majesty’s Revenue Commissioners is seeking to obtain a computer disk stolen from a Swiss bank with the names of 1,500 account holders who may be using Switzerland as a tax haven.
The disk was first offered to the German government by an informant in Switzerland, and the Germans have already received approval from lawyers to purchase the data, in the interests of personal tax investigations.
HMRC would be entitled to bid for the disk, as it may, under UK law, pay for information that may lead to the investigation, identification and prosecution of tax evaders. HMRC hopes to sift the data on the disk to zone in on British holders of Swiss bank accounts.
The disk has also attracted the interest of the Dutch, Belgian and Austrian tax authorities, who wish to monitor the possible avoidance of personal taxes by their own nationals.
Switzerland’s reputation as a tax haven is reinforced by the measures it takes to reassure its banking clientele that their money is safe, from real as well as online invaders. Barbed wire trellises seal all Swiss borders, and multiple rows of manhole shafts criss-cross all border roads, designed to be filled with explosives at the first hint of invasion.
This latest security breach is certain to unsettle those avoiding personal tax by using Swiss banks. It will also remind Swiss bankers of the dangers of capital flight, as summed up by their own centuries-old mantra: ‘Money is as timid as a deer’ (‘Das Geld ist ein scheues Reh’).
