Australian motives on Vanuatu tax crackdown questioned

07/05/2008 04:34:38

The Australian government has been accused of using Vanuatu's status as a tax haven, to prove it is serious about fighting tax evasion.

Pacific Correspondent Campbell Cooney reports that last week, Australian Federal Police were involved in raids on a number of Vanuatu's financial institutions.

The raids were part of the Wikenby Project, an Australian multi-government agency investigation into tax avoidance and evasion.

The project has identified Vanuatu's tax free status as a major source of tax evasion.

Last week Port Vila accountant Robert Agius was arrested and charged with laundering an estimated $A100 million for Australian clients.

However Vanuatu Finance Centre Association chair Mark Stafford has questioned the Australian government's motives.

"This may be seeking justification for the funds that have been provided for the Wikenby investigation - I believe it's over $300 million, and the outcomes that they've achieved to date perhaps don't justify the expenses that have been incurred," he said.

Lawyers in Vanuatu, representing two of the companyies raided last week, have successfully applied to the courts, stopping the AFP from sending any of the confiscated files back to Australia.

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