The German government, which has already bought stolen information from a Liechtenstein private bank while chasing suspected tax evaders, said yesterday it will adopt the same tactic with Swiss banks, raising the tensions between the two states.

German finance minister Wolfgang Schäuble was reported by media outlets as saying yesterday that the government was looking for a way to acquire the information - which the government said was offered by an informant in return for €2.5 million ($3.5 million) - without breaching privacy laws or other statutes.

The information includes the account details of some 1,500 Germans allegedly hiding money from German tax authorities in Swiss bank accounts, according to people who have been briefed on the matter, the Wall Street Journal reported.

In recent years, the German and UK governments have used data stolen by a former employee of LGT, the Liechtenstein private bank. Meanwhile, in past months, data stolen from HSBC’s private bank in Switzerland has been offered to the French government.

The fact that governments are prepared to use stolen information - which is ironic, given how governments insist on the need to regulate financial services to protect clients - demonstrates how determined they are to catch alleged tax evaders.

After debating the proposal over the weekend, leading officials in chancellor Angela Merkel's government decided Berlin should try to buy the data despite the potential legal and diplomatic difficulties that would ensue.

Germany should do "everything to get this data…if it is relevant," to fighting tax evasion, Ms Merkel was quoted as saying by the WSJ.

The Swiss government said on Monday that finance minister Hans-Rudolf Merz had told Mr Schäuble in a phone call that data theft is illegal in Switzerland. A Swiss finance ministry spokesman said yesterday that Swiss law prohibits Swiss officials from providing legal assistance to an investigation based on "bank information that was stolen in Switzerland."