Tax havens exposed in huge law firm leak

[ianch99]

Originally Posted by Chris

Great, another opportunity for po-faced lefty hypocrisy:

http://order-order.com/2016/04/04/me...fshore-havens/

From the Telegraph:

Live Panama Papers: Tory peers, former MPs and party donors implicated in tax haven leak as David Cameron told to take 'real action'

Cameron's offshore fund 'avoided paying tax by hiring Bahamas bishop to sign paperwork'

David Cameron’s father ran an offshore fund which avoided paying tax in Britain by hiring Bahamas residents, including a bishop, to sign paperwork

Happier?

[nomadking]

How is this all that different from the likes of Mick Jagger, Bono, and Sting funnelling their money from intellectual property rights into Dutch companies? They are avoiding tax. Which means that the Dutch based company has more cash to invest elsewhere. The money those investments earn then have Dutch tax applied to them. If money from the company is then transferred to the person, then they pay tax on it. IIRC Sting transferred a chunk from his Dutch company in 2010 in to avoid the Labour tax increase from 45% to 50%.

Companies like hedge funds will also use the same principle but with tax havens. The income that is generated internally by the company is tax free, but once any income is sent out to the shareholders it is then taxed at the appropriate rate for that person. Money originally invested in the hedge fund is likely to have been taxed already.

Originally Posted by ianch99

From the Telegraph:

Live Panama Papers: Tory peers, former MPs and party donors implicated in tax haven leak as David Cameron told to take 'real action'



Happier?

Not at all. They all need a good kicking. However, watching the Grauniad tutting and shaking its head over all this leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

Originally Posted by ianch99

Oh dear, how embarrassing:

Fund run by David Cameron’s father avoided paying UK tax

"David Cameron’s father ran an offshore fund that avoided ever having to pay tax in Britain by hiring a small army of Bahamas residents – including a part-time bishop – to sign its paperwork."

Love the way the Guardian are covering their asses on this one - "we'll make it sound bad, but will stress that nothing illegal can be proved". Some quotes from the Guardian article

There is no suggestion that Blairmore was using them for any illegal purpose, and they were common among offshore funds at the time.

There is no suggestion this arrangement was illegal and it was used by other offshore funds at the time

Blairmore was created at a time when currency controls had just been relaxed and a number of British money managers decided to go offshore to make the most of low-tax jurisdictions. In 2012, in response to wider industry trends away from offshore, Blairmore moved residence from Panama to Ireland, which means it is now regulated in Europe.

[ianch99]

Originally Posted by Chris

Not at all. They all need a good kicking. However, watching the Grauniad tutting and shaking its head over all this leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

Totally agree.

[Taf]

It was David Cameron's government that banned bearer shares in the UK in 2015. The Prime Minister has also called for an international crackdown on aggressive tax avoidance and evasion.

However, an investment prospectus published by Blairmore in 2006 states that it will seek to ensure its profits remain beyond the reach of HMRC.

"The directors intend that the affairs of the fund should be managed and conducted so that it does not become resident in the UK for UK taxation purposes. Accordingly, the fund will not be subject to UK corporation tax or income tax on its profits."

Blairmore stopped using bearer shares in 2006. And it still hasn't paid any tax in the UK.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-35961422

[ianch99]

Originally Posted by Hugh

Love the way the Guardian are covering their asses on this one - "we'll make it sound bad, but will stress that nothing illegal can be proved". Some quotes from the Guardian article

The reason it is embarrassing for Cameron is the "all in it together bit". If he had just said:

Look, if you have lots of money and you can afford to employ expensive accountants to exploit legal but morally dubious offshore tax schemes then good luck to you.

Oh, and by the way, all your middle income PAYE folks, your money ain't going anywhere except to the Inland Revenue

.. then fair enough ..

You're missing my point - they cannot find anything illegal in the Blairmore link, so they are covering their asses with the caveats I highlighted (whilst overlooking that Guardian Media Group has between £300 and £500 million in assets in Cayman Islands accounts - a tad hypocritical of them, I think...).

[ianch99]

Originally Posted by Hugh

You're missing my point - they cannot find anything illegal in the Blairmore link, so they are covering their asses with the caveats I highlighted...

I agree but I am not suggesting anything is illegal here ..

So if there is nothing illegal, why is the Guardian making such a fuss over Blairmore?

[denphone]

Originally Posted by Taf

I just riles me that the less well off have to pay their share of taxes, whilst those with wealth can find ways not to.

Sadly it has been happening since the year dot and will continue to happen well after we are gone as well.

Well, here's hoping the information is given to various tax authorities (including HMRC and IRS), so if illegal activities have occurred, the individuals/companies can be traced, fined, and prosecuted.

[ianch99]

Originally Posted by Hugh

So if there is nothing illegal, why is the Guardian making such a fuss over Blairmore?

To highlight the hypocrisy and to illuminate the levels of tax avoidance during a period when the majority of the population, who have no choice but to pay the tax demanded of them, are asked to undergo Austerity cuts ..

Originally Posted by Hugh

Well, here's hoping the information is given to various tax authorities (including HMRC and IRS), so if illegal activities have occurred, the individuals/companies can be traced, fined, and prosecuted.

Not holding my breath on that..it's going to take years to untangle all the complexities of the info and to get to any form of prosecution..probably end up paying a derisory fine/tax bill and no jail time going by previous cases.

Originally Posted by ianch99

To highlight the hypocrisy and to illuminate the levels of tax avoidance during a period when the majority of the population, who have no choice but to pay the tax demanded of them, are asked to undergo Austerity cuts ..

Then why didn't they highlight the hypocrisy of the Guardian Media Group having hundreds of millions of pounds in offshore Cayman Island bank accounts at the same time?