The Institute of Directors (IoD) says it has turned down an invitation to appear because it does not believe the panel is objective.

The States Scrutiny panel looking at tax is made up of five members.

It includes an expert from a UK group which campaigns against tax havens such as the Channel Islands.

Short notice

IoD chairman Andrew Lewis said the institute was not opposed to the principle of scrutiny, but said appearing would be a "waste of time".

He also said the institute would not have had long enough to prepare properly, because it was only contacted two weeks before the meeting.

He said instead it would focus on consulting its members on the details of a goods and services tax.