Best of the web: Switzerland fights tax haven slurs - with half-naked farmers

Switzerland, fed up with being portrayed as a tax-dodgers' paradise, is rebranding itself as a land of hunky half-naked peasants with waxed chests and tight leather shorts.

"We want to show Switzerland in its best light, the countryside and a bit of its culture," says Tina Steinauer, who has been shooting the 2010 calendar for the Swiss farmers' union at the village of Seegräben near Zurich, says The Times. Full story...

An avoidance scheme that could have drained the exchequer of up to £1bn ($1.6bn) has been blocked, after the Treasury discovered a loophole in business tax relief, The FT reports.

Stephen Timms, financial secretary to the Treasury, told MPs last week that Revenue & Customs believed "that the scheme is capable of being used by a large number of companies with the consequent risk of a significant loss of revenue". Full story...

Fake picture allegations and a member of the ruling family linked to a £428 million Dubai property row that has touched nerves across the city, says The Independent.

"Fake" pictures are at the heart of a property scandal that could harm the reputation of the once-booming real estate market in Dubai.

A major property development firm with links to the ruling family of the UAE city-state, and the firm's marketing agency, are accused by investors, many of whom are UK citizens, of obtaining millions of pounds through the use of false construction photographs. Full story...

A Briton faces 170 years in jail after being charged in the United States over a $7 million (£4.39 million) investment fraud, according to The Times.

Robert Tringham, 64, from Knebworth, Herts, is accused of running a Ponzi, or pyramid, scheme in which investors were duped into handing over money which they believed would be held in safe accounts and used only to buy bonds. Full story...

Accenture is seeking to become the latest company to switch tax-haven locales, The Wall Street Journal reports.

On Tuesday, the consulting and outsourcing firm said its board of directors had unanimously approved switching the company's place of incorporation from Bermuda to Ireland. Full story...

Vodafone has raised the prospect of joining the tax exodus from Britain after demanding a "dialogue with the Government" on taxation, says The Times.

The world's largest mobile phone company, which has been embroiled in a long dispute with the Government over tax on foreign earnings, appears to be losing patience with taxation policy in Britain. Full story...

Banks signing up to the delayed code of practice on tax may also be forced to ensure their senior employees are paying the correct amount to the exchequer under proposals being considered by the Treasury, The Guardian reports.

It is thought that the code of practice, originally slated for publication alongside the budget, may include an obligation on banks to ensure their top staff pay an appropriate amount of tax. Full story...

The Financial Services Authority suggested boosting the amount savers can have guaranteed by the Government if the bank they have made the deposit with goes bankrupt, says The Independent. Full story...