Dail committee may ask bank executives to explain actions

Accounts is to consider requesting senior bank officials to appear before it, after the question of the culpability of bank executives in recommending bogus offshore accounts for customers arose at a meeting yesterday.

The committee's chairman, Mr Jim Mitchell, said that the committee would discuss "the criminal prosecution of compliant bank executives" at its next meeting. The possibility of introducing legislation, which would protect "whistle-blowers" such as the National Irish Bank officials who leaked information to RTE, would also be discussed.

"Is there a need to change the law for indemnity?" he asked. The chairman of the Revenue Commissioners, Mr Cathal MacDomhnaill, said that a number of people had written to Revenue about illegal practices and, if they were willing to testify, charges of aiding and abetting could be brought. But usually the information could not be "translated" into evidence, because jobs would be at stake. Mr Mitchell said that although there had been tremendous improvements in recent years, the reality was that recent revelations and tribunals had occurred "under the noses of the Revenue Commissioners".

The commissioners had been "remiss" and "somewhat less robust" in ensuring that there was no tax evasion, he contended.

But Mr MacDomhnaill said that in the Beef and the McCracken tribunals, the commissioners had been vindicated. "I am quite confident that Revenue will get a reasonable hearing in the Moriarty Tribunal," he said. Mr Mitchell, referring to a recent court decision where a professional person was not jailed for tax evasion because his business would close, said that there was an attitude persisting in society "that really jail is no place for gentlemen, even if they are criminal tax evaders. That attitude has to change."

Responding to Mr Michael Bell, who asked whether Revenue had "the necessary troops and weaponry", Mr MacDomhnaill said that extra resources would get extra results and that another 200 or 300 people would be put to good account.

Mr MacDomhnaill said that 22 cases had been referred to the DPP, three of which were before the courts. "The DPP has given permission to prosecute on another two. We are awaiting instruction on another two and we have 15 still under investigation," he said. Under the Revenue's new criminal prosecution policy, there had been two convictions in 1998, one involving a seven-year prison sentence and the other, a £2,250 fine. There were two cases pending from 1997, he said.

"That is what I want to re-emphasise here, that the commitment of Revenue to tackling evasion is solid," he said.

Mr Mitchell said that there had been "a total lack of a prosecution ethos at the Revenue over the years". "Is there not an attitude problem that the white collar criminal is not a criminal?" he asked. Mr MacDomhnaill replied that Revenue was now looking for custodial sentences, although penalties had been imposed in civil cases "which are far greater than on the criminal prosecution road".