Spin doctor leaked Thorning's tax details

Former Tax Minister Troels Lund Poulsen’s closest advisor offered the then opposition leader Helle Thorning-Schmidt’s personal tax details to tabloid daily Ekstra Bladet, writes Seven59.dk. This has come forward in what commentators on other Danish media are already calling one of the largest political scandals in newer Danish history.

Troels Lund Poulsen has taken leave from this parliamentary seat with immediate effect.

In a breach of journalistic ethics, the newspaper revealed the former minister’s spin doctor Peter Arnfeldt as the man who openly discussed the current Prime Minister and then opposition leader Ms Thorning-Schmidt and her husband Stephen Kinnock’s tax returns over the phone.

Former minister: ‘Nothing to hide’

A Copenhagen tax authority ruling had cleared them of wrong-doing.

But according to the journalist there were certain things in the Copenhagen Tax Authority’s ruling that ‘troubled’ the spin doctor who claimed to have access to all of the eight-page ruling but would only provide details over the phone as giving Ekstra Bladet a copy would ‘ruin his career’.

The current Minister of Taxation has announced an independent commission into whether there was political interference into Ms Thorning-Schmidt’s tax affairs and the role played by former Tax Minister Troels Lund Poulsen.

Administrative law expert Sten Bønsing says that Arnfeldt’s leak would be a breach of the professional secrecy act and could lead to a prison sentence. Former minister Lund Poulsen claimed Friday that he had ‘nothing to hide’ and looked forward to giving evidence to the Commission.

miy@adm.ku.dk

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