GUERNSEY was among the offshore financial centres highlighted in the House of Lords yesterday as tax avoidance was discussed.

But the island avoided fierce criticism and was actually praised by Labour’s Lord Myners for the tax information agreements it has in place.

‘The UK has taken the EU lead on tackling some of the most aggressive tax avoidance schemes. We have seen progress in the Crown Dependencies, particularly Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man, in signing tax information exchange agreements and we welcome this,’ he said.

Deputy leader of the Liberal Democrat peers Lord Wallace of Saltaire sparked the debate.

He wanted to highlight the alleged role of British offshore financial centres in enabling UK residents and companies to avoid tax.

‘This debate is taking place in a very different environment than it was 10 years ago,’ he said.

‘When I raised this issue 10 years ago, it was a taboo. But now we are in a very different world and offshore centres have become a matter of concern for heads of nations across the world.’

Lord Wallace said the Crown Dependencies had seen a boom in recent years and he wanted assurances that the UK government would treat its own offshore centres in the same way as international jurisdictions on which it seeks to clamp down.