Armenian government toughens control over major taxpayers

The Armenian government will toughen control over big businesses to
make their activities more transparent, Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan
said on Thursday

"The Ministry of Finance has already listed country's major taxpayers,
the annual income of which exceeded AMD 1 billion in 2009," Sargsyan
said during a cabinet session.

He admitted that government should observe closely the activities of
big business, which sometimes create obstacles to the development of
small and medium businesses.

"The only way to ensure the transparency of big businesses' activity
is to publish the conclusions of independent audits," the Panarmenian
news agency quoted the premier as saying.

The Armenian government is worried that during the economic crisis,
the main tax burden will fall on the shoulders of small and medium
business.

“That's why a bill to include the results of independent audits into
the spring records should be passed by parliament in the near future,”
Sarkisyan said.