Offshore accounts - War on terror to expose tax cheats

IT is ironic that America’s global assault on terrorism, involving the hunting down of assets held

Under an agreement about to be signed between this country and a number of tax havens, including the Cayman Islands, the Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey, the Revenue Commissioners will in future enjoy much greater access to offshore bank accounts held by wealthy individuals.

As witnessed in a recent spate of tax evasion scandals, layers of subterfuge have enabled tax evaders to hide a large share of their wealth from the gaze of the taxman.