Looking back, Sérgio Vasques, former Secretary of State for Fiscal Affairs in the last government of José Sócrates, assumes that create a forgiveness of tax debts, as it was launched in 2010 by the executive to which he belonged, is a bad signal that gives taxpayers.
Sérgio Vasques, Secretary of State for Fiscal Affairs between 2009 and 2011, Fernando Teixeira dos Santos in front of the Ministry of Finance, is to be heard on the afternoon of Friday in the Budget and Finance Committee in Parliament, the purpose of Swissleaks case.
The issue of tax benefits was raised in committee soon to open, the Socialist deputy José Magalhães, who asked Sérgio Vasques to rule on the “use of system “so-called RERT (tax benefits were launched in 2005 and 2010, during the governments of José Sócrates, and in 2013, already with the current executive Pedro Passos Coelho).
When you throw” tax amnesties ” , expression Sérgio Vasques did not shy away to use to refer to debts to the tax authorities regularization programs, there are “well aware” that is to give “taxpayers a signal that is perverse,” acknowledged tax expert and former ruler.
On the other hand, continued, such a program allows you to obtain tax revenue and the idea get money for budget implementation “always ends up winning.” The tax benefits were recorded in a “tightening torque in our public accounts,” noted, adding that the Portuguese tax history in recent years “a little of this is done.” This has been “a regular mechanism Portuguese state funding.”
Contradictions on the list of contributors
About Swissleaks case, former Secretary of State for Fiscal Affairs ensured that international efforts were made in 2010 to request the list of taxpayers with secret accounts at HSBC bank in Switzerland, and the doubts of tax evasion. Sérgio Vasques ensured that made several “demarches” and instructed the DGCI -. Directorate General of Taxation, the current Tax and Customs Authority, “sometime in 2010″
At issue is the so-called “Lagarde List”, the current Director General of the IMF, then French Finance Minister, handed the Greek counterpart, with a list held by the French authorities which contained Greek taxpayers with secret accounts in Switzerland.
At the end of the mandate in 2011, the executive had not yet obtained the list, he said, assuming that the information “is still not knowledge” of the Portuguese authorities. “The list was not shared immediately to what I understand.”
It was the socialist deputy, the first to intervene, who asked Sérgio Vasques on measures taken during the last Socialist government. But when approached this topic, José Magalhães took in his question to the former Socialist minister, who then executive did not have access to the list now conveyed in the case Swissleaks, sparking opposition Members of smiles and some side comments.
Later, Mr Christopher North, PSD, raised questions about the application from the list and questioned the former secretary of socialist state on which the document request to the French and where authorities could be found.
Sergio Vasques’d say remember having spoken on the issue more than once with José Azevedo Pereira, then Director-General of DGCI. However, opposition deputies confronted the former Secretary of State to a report of the Economic Journal, realizing a contradiction between statements of Teixeira Santos and Azevedo Pereira, the former minister to say that he gave orders for services ask the list and the former head of the tax authorities to ensure that did not sign any letter requesting the data.
The PCP’s Deputy Paulo Sá questioned whether this approach was given in writing. Pedro Filipe Soares, the Left Bloc, pressed the issue, citing several countries, according to the press, received the ordered list to the French authorities.
“France closed its doors to Portugal, who had opened the other countries? If there was such a request here there is at least irresponsible, “said bloquista parliamentary leader.
Sergio Vasques just returned to talk about steps. “When was the public knowledge, through the international media, the list of the existence, in fact I spoke with Professor Azevedo Pereira to know that demarches [could be made].” “In that specific day, I have no idea,” he continued, merely to say that “these demarches did not bring results.” “In concrete is what you can transmit.”
