Rob Horgan
THE Gibraltar government is suing a Spanish daily national over a front page story which pictured the Rock as an iceberg of dirty money.
The article, which appeared in ABC newspaper, labelled Gibraltar a ‘tax haven’ and alleged it is home to ‘15 organised crime gangs’ connected to drug smuggling, money laundering and the Russian mafia.
A defamation claim has been launched by the government, who claim the allegations are ‘wholly inaccurate and damaging to the reputation and name of Gibraltar’.
“The government is not prepared to tolerate this kind of journalism and has therefore taken legal action against the ABC newspaper and its editor, calling for the publication of a correction and an apology,” said a spokesman.
ABC has so far failed to comment.
Money laundering, tax evasion and smuggling is all that Gibraltar is about. The consequence for the middle class in Spain and the UK is having to pay higher taxes.
You really couldn’t make it up, could you!
http://theolivepress.es/spain-news/2015/03/16/banco-de-madrid-files-for-bankruptcy-after-money-laundering-allegations-surround-parent-company/
Casares seems to be the hotbed for Russian mafia money laundering, aka the Majestic case. These stories from Spain about Gibraltar are purely to deflect away from the PP’s disastrous poll results and ongoing corruption scandals. The OECD has already stated that Gibraltar is compliant with all tax transparency laws. If you want tax evasion and corruption, Spain is the place to look first.
Just took the words out of our mouth… Is Gibraltar being used to launder the same mafia money which has been pumped into property and projects throughout Casares, Marbella and Estepona?
Rob, do you have any proof that Gibraltar is being used to launder money of any kind?
Oh dear…Ciudadanos ..Do your homework ,find out the facts and you will see how the opposite is true before you spout out more vile rubbish…LOL Clearly you have swallowed the party line and you have been completely brainwashed by the lies and misinformation pumped out by your utterly corrupt immoral shameless hypocritical and incompetent PP government …Sort out your own filthy mess before looking elsewhere..The world knows the truth ..Spain is a basket case and if it wasn’t for the EU bailouts your country would be utterly bankrupt …
Gibraltar is all about money laundry, it doesnt benefit british tax payers, we should all unite against tax evasion and the war on terror
the amount of any type of crime in algeciras alone makes gibraltar look like a day at kindergarten
But… But… Karlos, that doesn’t fit the narrative of Mariano’s story.
Get back ‘on message’
Oh so that’s your other alias, Ciudadanos. lol.
Yes there’s dodgy money in Gibraltar and yes there’s institutional-level corruption in Spain. Gib survives on servicing the ultra rich and doesn’t ask how they got to be that way. If Gib wants to properly fly the flag then they should follow UK tax [and other] laws. The dependency on financial services is setting themselves up for a fall for when/ if the net around offshore practices is tightened further.
Spain’s corruption has execerbated inequality and inefficiency and helped the growth of 2 new political parties. The whole region needs a vision for the future people can get behind; perhaps that’s the same case for the UK and Europe too.
Gibraltar law is pretty much the same as English law and Gibraltar is fully compliant with EU law. Oh, and Gibraltar doesn’t depend only on financial services, they have a few other strings to their bow… There’s dodgy money everywhere (especially the 23% of the Spanish economy which is “informal”, is not declared and does not pay tax). Gibraltar has a vision for the future. Spain does not.
Spain is one big draconian bully.
Thanks Dref, you’re saving me so much time.
Gib Finance Sector has been ruled compliant with EU law
Where are all the comments from Spaniards? I guess they are too busy laughing and taunting you all. lol
More likely, Manny that they can’t read this since they they had their electricity disconnected when they lost their jobs when the economy tanked and then their local authority embezzled all the funds from the EU that were meant to be spent on job creation.
Yes. I think that’s more likely.
Follow this link to an article published today in “El País” .
“http://politica.elpais.com/politica/2015/03/21/actualidad/1426964921_450759.html”
Gibraltar is a shameful place that does not represent anything to do with European values.
The fact that the UK allows this “joint” to continue does not say much about the UK either.
And Spain is the epitomy of fair play and an anti corruption paradise. On yer bike Ciudadanos, and take your hypocritcal, nepotistic, fascist, and frankly abject excuse for a modern ‘democratic’ country with you.