EU parliament to have inquiry into Panama offshore accounts

BRUSSELS – The European Union's legislature is setting up an inquiry committee to look into the use of offshore accounts by people and multinationals to stash funds and avoid paying taxes, something which costs the EU billions of dollars a year.

European Parliament taxation expert Philippe Lamberts said Thursday that the recent leaks from a Panama law firm showed that despite some legislation in place "we have so far only been looking at the tip of the iceberg of the odious tax avoidance practices employed by wealthy individuals and businesses."

The legislature will agree on an exact mandate at its session next month.