WORLD leaders have pledged a crackdown on money launderers, illegal tax evaders and corporate tax avoiders.

They agreed the large multinational companies should inform all tax authorities about the taxes they paid and where they paid them.

David Cameron described the move as "proper tax justice" and said the Lough Erne Declaration had the potential to "rewrite the rules" on tax and transparency.

It follows the row over how several major firms such as Google, Apple, Starbucks and Amazon have minimised their tax bills.

Signed by the G8 leaders, the Declaration promises to "fight the scourge of tax evasion" by ensuring automatic exchange of tax information and forcing com-panies to reveal the identities of their ultimate owners.

The agreement called on industries and governments to publish details of what money changes hands to tackle corruption linked to the trade in resources like oil, gas and minerals in the developing world.

Last night, charities and anti-poverty campaigners welcomed the move to open up tax havens and enforce openness on extractive industry contracts but said the agreement did not go far enough for poor countries to reap the full benefits.

It came as Paul Collier, a Number 10 tax adviser, warned African countries were losing twice as much in avoided tax as they were getting in aid from the West. He insisted company directors had a "duty" to ensure their firms paid their share of tax.

Speaking at his end-of-summit press conference, the Prime Minister said the Declaration had the "potential to rewrite the rules on tax and transparency for the benefit of countries right across the world, including the poorest countries in the world".

He explained new mechanisms to ensure multinational com-panies paid taxes in the countries where they earned their profits would allow the authorities to "track and expose those who aren't paying their fair share".