French Communist Suggests Tough Measures Against Tax Evasion After Pandora Papers Release

PARIS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 05th October, 2021) A French Communist Party leader and future presidential candidate, Fabien Roussel, proposed a set of measures to fight tax crimes after the release of the Pandora Papers, which exposed the offshore activities of a number of political figures around the world.

The politician spoke out in favor of prison sentences for those who commit financial crimes, and suggested that 15,000 tax inspectors should be engaged for an anti-tax evasion campaign.

"As for those who were charged with tax fraud, real jail sentences must be introduced," Roussel said at a press conference, adding that politicians involved in fraudulent tax schemes must be barred from elections.

Additionally, Roussel proposed to abolish a law allowing the negotiation of fines for tax crimes and to create a list of countries that host offshore zones, such as Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Ireland, and Belgium.

"This Pandora Papers scandal shows that prime ministers, heads of state, monarchs, French politicians, for example, Dominique Strauss-Kahn (International Monetary Fund ex-managing director and former French finance minister) .

.. used offshore companies for money laundering, so that not to pay money (taxes) on millions of Dollars," Roussel said.

As part of a countrywide drive to eradicate tax crimes, Roussel suggested creating a special ministry in France which would specialize in fraud and tax evasion, and an independent supervisory center for the same purpose.

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists released on Sunday the Pandora Papers dossier, considered to be the biggest hitherto by the organization. The papers detail tax haven schemes used by over 35 current and former global leaders and more than 330 officials worldwide. Over 11.9 million leaked financial documents were submitted as evidence.