Financial Transparency Coalition

VIENNA (AFP)--Austrian members of parliament failed Wednesday to approve a resolution relaxing the country's strict banking secrecy laws, which came under fire this year.

The G8 leaders released a joint statement entitled "Responsible Leadership for a Sustainable Future" on the first day of the G8 Summit in L'Aquila, Italy. The statement addresses many issues including climate change, the financial crisis, tax evasion, corruption, disaster relief/prevention and more.

Our good friend and Task Force member, Richard Murphy, has gotten ahold of the UK/France Summit Communiqué and points out some very exciting language. 1st - both countries acknowledge that 12 TIEA agreements to do not a clean jurisdiction make. And 2nd - both countries call on the OECD to look at the benefits of country-by-country reporting. From the communiqué (emphasis added by Richard Murphy):

France and the United Kingdom will also address the task of implementing the decision of the G20 concerning uncooperative jurisdictions and remain vigilant in ensuring that the...