GENEVA (AP) ? Switzerland's lower house of parliament pushed back strongly Tuesday against a government proposal to end the bitter dispute with U.S. authorities over suspected American tax cheats.
The compromise legislation is at heart a debate over the Alpine nation's vaunted banking secrecy which is now threatened by the U.S. crackdown on suspected tax evaders.
But the odds are now increasing of running out the clock on the debate and incurring more U.S. criminal charges brought against Swiss banks.
By a wide margin of 126-67 with two abstentions, Switzerland's National Council voted not to discuss the measure which is intended to let Swiss banks sidestep secrecy laws so that they can pursue settlements with U.S. prosecutors. It instead sent it back to the upper house for reconsideration.
Finance Minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf had presented the legislation as a way for Swiss banks to turn over confidential client data to U.S. prosecutors without breaking Switzerland's strict client secrecy laws. By doing so, the banks will be able to cut deals that may include the payment of fines to avoid criminal charges.
But with parliament's summer session drawing to a close this week, the odds are diminishing for an imminent compromise. A second refusal by the lower house would effectively kill the bill.
Widmer-Schlumpf told lawmakers that the U.S. is planning to bring criminal charges against some Swiss banks and that without the legislation there is "real danger of an escalation" in the standoff between the two countries. More than a dozen Swiss banks are being investigated by U.S. authorities.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/swiss-lawmakers-reject-deal-end-us-tax-spat-100515908.html
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