OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau sidestepped questions Wednesday on whether companies with offshore bank accounts will be eligible for emergency COVID-19 aid after previously telling MPs they won’t be. “Companies who do practice tax avoidance will face consequences in our system,” Trudeau responded in French. The federal government has been ordered to pay the company $1.8 million to cover legal costs related to the case. Some European countries, such as Denmark, France, and Poland, have declared that companies registered in offshore tax havens will not be eligible for government assistance during the coronavirus pandemic. A 2019 analysis by the parliamentary budget officer suggested the Canada Revenue Agency missed $25 billion in lost corporate income tax revenue because of offshore tax haven loopholes.

Source: Huffington Post April 29, 2020 22:30 UTC