Those naughty banks; luckily the government are on their case.....

[1234andcounting]

why have you read into my point somthing that i've not said? if it wasnt for the data theft, i was going to completly ignore the old story. im not sure how much it smears the Tories when it happened in 2007, other than their appointing the chap running HSBC into government, but thats par for the course and again barely worth a story. im highlighting the biggest news in this story is the apparently lack of security within the banks. Panaroma should have investigated this instead.

Lack of security in banks. Now that is a non-story. I no longer work in financial services but when I did, and monitored the regulator's punishments as part of my role, banks, building societies and insurance companies were being hit with fines for lax information security management or just incompetence on a regular basis. I am sure nothing has changed today for all the hassle a consumer goes through to get access to his or her money. How difficult is it to go home with a laptop (and leave it in the hall as happened with a senior executive of a major high street bank back in the day).

Panorama is concentrating on the right story imho.

 

[Diego Napier]

im not in the least bit surprised a bank should be aiding its customers in avoiding tax.

And I'm not in the least bit surprised that the government saw fit to appoint the man in charge of HSBC at the time, Stephen Green, as a Conservative peer and minister for trade and investment eight months after HMRC was made aware of their promotion of and collusion in tax evasion scams.

Still, the real story here is the whistleblower? Good grief! If there was a bad smell coming out of your *rse you'd blame Heinz for not putting a warning on their cans of beans.

 

[Vegas Seagull]

Smug Red Ed Balls & the loony left to blame again

 

[spring hall convert]

This'll be the same HSBC that was laundering the Mexican drug cartels money and got away with a fine, a few resignations and saying sorry.

http://www.theguardian.com/business/2012/jul/17/hsbc-executive-resigns-senate

There's clearly evidence of illegal behaviour here - this isn't just a case of the immoral "limiting tax liabilities." argument. HSBC have been supporting tax evasion as well as laundering drug money (again.)

Panorama has aired a few things recently that have looked sensational on paper and then turned out to be damp squibs. We'll see tonight I guess.

I'd like to understand the reluctance of HMRC to prosecute as well. Surely you are just encouraging people to try it on again in future?

 

[spring hall convert]

Smug Red Ed Balls & the loony left to blame again

HSBC to blame.

 

[Vegas Seagull]

HSBC to blame.

Customers decision to accept advice, more chose to ignore

 

[Deleted member 22389]

One if you think this type of activity is limited to one and not ALL banks everywhere then you're bloody naive and two are any of you on here stupid enough not to want a way to legitimately pay less tax than you do now by adopting mechanisms within the legal framework established by whichever entity/jurisdiction chooses to do so to attract foreign investment/assets?

Yes it's galling that the top 1% of wealth 'get away with' this sort of activity more than the rest of us but thus it was and always will be.

The real story here is the data going missing but the left wing propaganda press only want you to see one thing in a run up to an election that their beloved Labour party will lose and that's the complicit nature of the upper echelons of the Tory party in this sort of activity whilst very conveniently and deliberately forgetting that it was the de-regulation of said Labour party that made it even easier for banks to adopt these sorts of practices and others leading to the Financial crisis of '08. Makes me so angry.

Well said.

 

[Questions]

I used to get mad at these sort of happenings mostly from Tory governments but in fairness also the giving of certain jobs for Labour bods as well. Now, I sort of accept it, knowing that I'm powerless to do anything about it.
It'll be 'Changes in legislation', and 'Lessons must be learned' and another hundred excuses that will be repeated often enough that even the cheats and the liars will actually start believing them.
HMRC won't go looking.......... Ffs they couldn't even get their dosh from Portsmouth FC.

I say that the morning I get another letter from them on a matter that has been sorted out months ago.
Come the revolution I'd have them up against the wall even before the Palace fans.

 

[Questions]

....

 

[spring hall convert]

Customers decision to accept advice, more chose to ignore

1. It appears they were complicit in tax evasion, as well as tax avoidance
2. It looks like they've been laundering dirty money (again.)

HSBC's fault. As far as the politicans go, they should all be embarassed. They've all sucked up to Stephen Green at one point or another, this looks to me like (another) failure of the whole establishment.

I'm just waiting for someone to stand up in Parliament and say now isn't time for political point scoring (Translation: We've all made mistakes and it'll just discredit the establishment in general to start mud-slinging.)

 

[Vegas Seagull]

1. It appears they were complicit in tax evasion, as well as tax avoidance
2. It looks like they've been laundering dirty money (again.)

HSBC's fault. As far as the politicans go, they should all be embarassed. They've all sucked up to Stephen Green at one point or another, this looks to me like (another) failure of the whole establishment.

I'm just waiting for someone to stand up in Parliament and say now isn't time for political point scoring (Translation: We've all made mistakes and it'll just discredit the establishment in general to start mud-slinging.)

They don't move money to Switzerland without a customer signing a form granting permission.

 

[Stato]

The left wing propaganda press only want you to see one thing in a run up to an election that their beloved Labour party....

Forgetting that the story comes from the BBC, not the newspapers, who are the 'left wing propaganda press' so in love with the Labour Party? Why if they love them so much has the national press given majority support to Labour's opposition at fifteen of the last eighteen elections? Tough love?

http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2010/may/04/general-election-newspaper-support

 

[spring hall convert]

They don't move money to Switzerland without a customer signing a form granting permission.

Which can be for legal tax avoidance purposes? We're talking knowlingly assisting in tax evasion here. Us "looney-lefties" (Translation: People that think taxation shouldn't be optional) are always being shouted down on here by people saying that there's a big difference between illegal evasion and immoral avoidance.

We have a company here that has assisted in creation of a framework for the purpose of breaking the law. The blame for creating that facility rests entirely with them. I would have thought even the usual voices of support for tax avodiance, would be speaking out against an institution assisting tax evasion.

There appears to evidence of them laundering dirty money again, as well.

HMRC only prosecuting one person is interesting as well. I'd imagine their argument will be that was the best way to ensure we collected the maximum tax revenue and if there had been high profile prosecutions we'd risk exisiting tax receipts in this country. I'd argue that both those points are frankly, bollocks.

 

[Vegas Seagull]

Which can be for legal tax avoidance purposes? We're talking knowlingly assisting in tax evasion here. Us "looney-lefties" (Translation: People that think taxation shouldn't be optional) are always being shouted down on here by people saying that there's a big difference between illegal evasion and immoral avoidance.

We have a company here that has assisted in creation of a framework for the purpose of breaking the law. The blame for creating that facility rests entirely with them. I would have thought even the usual voices of support for tax avodiance, would be speaking out against an institution assisting tax evasion.

There appears to evidence of them laundering dirty money again, as well.

HMRC only prosecuting one person is interesting as well. I'd imagine their argument will be that was the best way to ensure we collected the maximum tax revenue and if there had been high profile prosecutions we'd risk exisiting tax receipts in this country. I'd argue that both those points are frankly, bollocks.

Caveat emptor

 

[Lower West Stander]

I think the person whose views you queried thought this was an hour of TV wasted that could be better spent demonising those on benefits.

Absolutely.

Because this will be an hour of totally unbiased tv, giving equal opportunities to both sides of the argument to haver their say and coming with a balanced conclusion which will be aired right at the end of the programme.

And why exactly is evading tax demonising those on benefits?

 

[glasfryn]

queque of tax evaders to go to court = 1
queque of benefits scroungers to go to court= 1000's
"we are all in this togeter"
more votes for UKIP

 

[melias shoes]

No, no it isn't. Why are you always so pathetic when there is story that smears the Tories?

It happened on Labours watch.

 

[lawros left foot]

If, as some on here insist, there is no offence being committed, why not just publish the names of all 7000 account holders? Jimmy Carr, Gary Barlow, etc all appeared to have an attack of conscious once they were held up to public scrutiny. Why aren't we told who these account holders are

 

[Diego Napier]

Caveat emptor

vendit dimittere exequendis

 

[herecomesaregular]

If, as some on here insist, there is no offence being committed, why not just publish the names of all 7000 account holders? Jimmy Carr, Gary Barlow, etc all appeared to have an attack of conscious once they were held up to public scrutiny. Why aren't we told who these account holders are

Agreed, where is wikileaks when you need it?