12 NOVEMBER 1994, Page 32

No tax, please, we're British

IN BETWEEN times, Mr McDonough's bank has been wondering why the Brits (well, all foreigners, but we are in the lead) keep buying American companies. The results are so awful that the Fed thought there must be a tax scam — companies arranging for their profits to surface in a friendly tax climate, like that of Bermuda. Research now shows the Fed that we just bought dud businesses for too much money. So that's all right, then.