Irish prime minister Bertie Ahern has refused to resign over the controversy related to his personal finances, maintaining he has ‘nothing outstanding’ with the Irish Revenue office, following repeated calls from Enda Kenny, the Fine Gael leader and Eamon Gilmore, the Labour leader to quit.
Asked by reporters in Dublin if he had considered leaving office, Ahern said: ‘Never. I just got a mandate a few months ago so I have to see that out. Maybe 2012.’
Fine Gael this week formally filed a complaint against Ahern with Standards in Public Office (Sipo), claiming he is not tax compliant. The prime minister said he would produce a certificate of application, which was the ‘same in tax law’ as a tax clearance certificate, The Irish Times reports.
‘The issue here is very simple. In tax law the application certificate and the tax clearance certificate are the same in law,’ Ahern said. ‘The position taken by the Revenue is that they can't finalise it until Mahon's work is finished. I mean, that's fine by me. I have no difficulty with that, I have no difficulty with the Revenue position.’
Further reading:
Ahern’s tax irregularities spark political row
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