5 reasons Canada lags on tax-haven crackdown – Canada – CBC News

When eight of the world’s wealthiest countries gather on Monday for their annual forum, this time in Northern Ireland, the meeting will focus on, among other things, offshore tax havens.

The G8 summit on Monday and Tuesday comes nearly two months after what is believed to be the largest ever leak of data from offshore tax havens, most of it from the Caribbean and South Pacific. CBC News was part of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists group that was given access to the data from 10 locales, involving 130,000 people.

U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron, who currently chairs the G8, has come under increased political pressure at home to target these secretive offshore accounts and has made tax compliance a key focus of this year’s gathering.

Cameron is seeking an international agreement that would require countries to reveal the true beneficial owners of shell companies and trusts, a measure necessary to ensure tax-information exchanges work.

But Prime Minister Stephen Harper has been resisting parts of the plan, according to a report this weekend in the British press.

Here’s a look five recent CBC News stories that show how Canada has fared when it comes to dealing with offshore tax havens and tax cheats.

via 5 reasons Canada lags on tax-haven crackdown – Canada – CBC News.