EU Finance Ministers Seek to cut tax Evasion

{{European Union finance ministers are seeking ways to cut down on tax evasion and hammer out controversial building blocks of the region’s planned banking union to stabilize its financial system.}}

British Chancellor George Osborne insisted Tuesday cracking down on tax evasion was important in the current economically difficult times.

“I think that at an economic time like this, it is right that everyone makes their fair contribution,” Osborne said on his way into a meeting of the 27 EU ministers in Brussels. “This is our opportunity to do that.”

Part of the effort will involve reviving a long-stuck savings directive, which seeks to set up an automatic exchange of banking information between countries so that interest income on various types of savings accounts can be properly taxed.

The directive requires unanimous approval from all 27 EU members. However, Austria and Luxembourg, two states renowned for their cultures of banking secrecy, have long held up the regulation. But increasing international pressure from the U.S. and their European peers has swayed them into reconsidering their stance.

Britain, however, could also face tricky questions, as many EU officials say it is not doing enough to crack down on tax evasion in its offshore territories.

In addition, Irish Finance Minister Michael Noonan said he expected the ministers also to direct the European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, to begin negotiations on the exchange of banking information with five small countries that aren’t EU members — Switzerland, Andorra, San Marino, Monaco and Lichtenstein.

Noonan presided over the meeting because Ireland currently holds the EU’s six-month rotating presidency.

{AP}