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Written question asked by Stewart Malcolm McDonald (Scottish National Party) on Monday, 23 May 2016, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 26 May 2016 (named day). It was answered by David Gauke (Conservative) on Thursday, 26 May 2016 on behalf of the Treasury.

Mossack Fonseca

Question

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations his Department have received from the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) on the list of addresses of British entities registered with the Mossack Fonseca law firm in Panama published by the ICIJ on their website on 9 May 2016.

Answer

We welcome the statement from the source of the Panama Papers that they are willing to speak to law enforcement bodies. Tax evasion and money laundering are global issues, which is why the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and National Crime Agency (NCA) taskforce is working with international tax and law enforcement partners to take up this offer, and develop as many leads as possible from the data that is currently available.

HMRC has been in regular contact with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), who have refused to share their full data with HMRC, stating that their policy is not to hand over such material. While we welcome the steps the ICIJ has taken in exposing this issue, its decision not to release the full set of information is disappointing.

HMRC has begun analytical work on all the data published by the ICIJ, in addition to a wide range of other intelligence. As a result of this, the HMRC and NCA taskforce has opened a number of detailed and forensic enquiries.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
37976
Session
2016-17
Subjects
Mossack Fonseca
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk