10 years ago - The Sunday Times

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Maltese have €74m stashed away in Jersey

Maltese individuals currently hold at least €74 million in accounts in Jersey, according to estimates provided by British banking sources.

The British isle of Jersey (known internationally as a tax haven) passed to the Maltese authorities the equivalent of €417,000 for interest earned on accounts of Maltese non-residents for the year 2006, according to the sources.

“The €74 million in Maltese holdings in Jersey is just a very conservative estimate,” they told The Sunday Times.

The information surfaces for the first time following the introduction of an EU-wide Savings Tax Agreement, reached in 2005, whereby EU member states and other countries who decided to join this agreement – including Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Monaco – agreed to start sharing information and passing to each other part of the proceeds from interest paid on accounts of non-residents.

The agreement states that individuals holding accounts may choose to opt for voluntary disclosure of information to the tax authorities of the member state of residence as an alternative to paying this retention tax.

For 2006, it is estimated that just 50 per cent of the total interest was voluntarily disclosed.

25 years ago - The Times

Tuesday, October 12, 1993

Lawyers’ president warns of explosive tensions at the law courts

There was tension in the courts which might explode at any moment, the president of the Chamber of Advocates warned yesterday, citing as the reasons hurried and sometimes controversial reforms being carried out in the courts without dialogue.

Prof. Rene Cremona was addressing the recently appointed Mr Justice Noel Arrigo, who yesterday held his first sitting.

“Your work as a judge is onerous,” said Prof. Cremona, “and it is going to become even more difficult as we are going through a period of change, of quick reforms, which do not reflect true dialogue and which, at least in some instances, have all the characteristics of controversy that can cause trouble and further tension where tension is already and, I sometimes fear, on the point of exploding.”

In praising Mr Justice Arrigo for his humanism, Prof. Cremona said such a characteristic helped a judge to better understand the parties before him, particularly those giving evidence, as long as he had the opportunity to hear evidence viva voce.

It would be better, Cremona said, if there was a more detailed diagnosis of the situation.

Half a century ago - Times of Malta

Saturday, October 12, 1968

Fined for crossing during procession

Joseph Zahra, 44, of Valletta was yesterday fined £1 by Magistrate Dr J Debono for having, on August 4, crossed a road with a van while a religious procession was in progress. The incident took place in Merchants Street, Valletta, while Zahra was driving along Christopher Street.

The accused said that he decided to cross because otherwise he would have had to wait there for about three hours.

Brawl at discotheque 

John Gilbert Warner 25, from Trinidad, and his wife Grace 20, of Paola, together with Nicholas Gatt, 22, and Philip Xuereb, 19, both of Żebbuġ, appeared yesterday before Magistrate Dr J Soler to answer a charge of having disturbed public peace and order.

They were alleged to have been involved in a free for all brawl which took place at the Image discotheque on January 20.

 The fight is said to have started when The Warners were dancing at the discotheque and Xuereb asked Grace to dance with him. When Grace refused politely Xuereb told her that he was astonished that she preferred a “coloured” to him.