Tax cheats named

A regularly-published list of tax defaulters who eventually settle with the Revenue Commissioners appears in today's newspapers and, as usual, makes for interesting reading.

It names people from all walks of life with tax liabilities from about 12,000 to more than 660,000. But bigger fish are getting away. Greater transgressors than those named in the papers not only remain anonymous, but escape their liabilities entirely.

According to the annual report of the Comptroller and Auditor General, one property developer had a 10-year-old corporation tax bill of 442,000 written-off because the Revenue Commissioners could not find him.

Yet his recent development projects were worth somewhat more than 125 million. Last year there were only four convictions for serious tax evasion. One, an accountant, got 12 months in jail for false PAYE returns, while another businessman was given three months for VAT fraud.

The other two were fined, with a suspended prison sentence for one. By contrast, 163 criminal cases involving Social Welfare fraud were forwarded to the Chief State Solicitor for prosecution last year and 36 people were jailed.