The recent tribunals have confirmed the persistence of a culture of tax evasion and a hidden Ireland where "rarely poor" people systematically avoid their social obligations, the Taoiseach has said.
Mr Ahern warned that the past is catching up and people caught avoiding tax do serious damage to their reputation and social standing and tragically undo the effect of a lot of good work they may have done in many other respects. "Nobody in this society is too rich, too powerful or too important to escape detection and investigation," he said yesterday during an address to the Dundalk Chamber of Commerce. "The same rules apply to all. No one need come looking for protection."
The Taoiseach said he and the Government expected the tax authorities to proceed against anyone suspected of breaking the tax laws without fear or favour. "We all want a prosperous society. But we must have a fair one. The golden circles are being broken up. We want to be able to go on reducing the tax burden for all.
Strict tax enforcement will make that far easier to do."
Mr Ahern also spoke to the gathering of business people about the peace process and renewed the Government's commitment to sustain it and bring it successfully "to the new dimension we all seek - a dimension which accommodates the rights, opportunities and aspirations of all people on this island."