Panama Papers

Danthus

Danthus

Danthus

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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-35918844

A huge leak of confidential documents has revealed how the rich and powerful use tax havens to hide their wealth.

Eleven million documents were leaked from one of the world's most secretive companies, Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca.

They show how Mossack Fonseca has helped clients launder money, dodge sanctions and evade tax.

The company says it has operated beyond reproach for 40 years and has never been charged with criminal wrong-doing.

The documents show links to 72 current or former heads of state in the data, including dictators accused of looting their own countries.

They were obtained by the German newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung and shared with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).

BBC Panorama and The Guardian are among 107 media organisations in 78 countries that have been analysing the documents. The BBC does not know the identity of the source who provided them.
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Grabs popcorn.
 
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Glaucus said:
I like how they make it sound like everyone listed broke the law. I bet the majority is legal tax avoidance.
However will be interesting how it unravels, doubt it'll change anything. To many countries and states make money from this.
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On the ICIJ website they are explicit in saying that the law may not have been broken
 
wildman said:
exactly and neither is it illegal. People can question the morality of pumping your money offshore to reduce your tax liabilities through legal means, but that doesn't suddenly make it headline worthy.
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It may be worth noting that the company in question was setup and run in a way to evade tax.

The company used Bearer Shares, an instrument used to hide your ownership of a company.

David Cameron banned the latter because they were used to evade tax.
 
Pudney said:
Can evade is not the same as to evade.
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By doing what he did, registering offshore, holding meetings in the Bahamas, that was specifically done to evade paying tax in the UK.

Don't forget, Blairmore Inc was an investment vehicle, where it operated from only mattered in terms of tax.
 
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-35962326

Close relatives of seven current or former Chinese leaders have been found to have links to offshore firms.

Documents leaked from Panama name family members of the Chinese President, Xi Jinping, and two other members of China's elite Standing Committee, Zhang Gaoli and Liu Yunshan.

Relatives of the three men are listed as directors or shareholders in firms located in known tax havens.

The Chinese government has not responded to requests for comment.
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Pudney said:
That's not "evading" tax.

What if the vehicle has absolutely no other UK substance than a couple of UK based directors? Why would you create a UK liability by holding meetings in the UK when nothing else to do with the business is in the UK?
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-35961422

Richard Brooks, a former tax inspector who now writes for Private Eye magazine, says some people use the anonymity provided by bearer shares to evade tax.

"A bearer share is a piece of paper saying you own a share of a company. There doesn't have to be any other record other than that piece of paper, which means you can hide your ownership of bearer shares.

"And when it comes to declaring what assets, what wealth you have, what income you have, it really leaves it just to you and your conscience."
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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.
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Pudney said:
Unfortunately I understand this area and I can see the many flaws in peoples moral outrage. I've never been one to judge others before the facts are known and if that means I don't fall in to mob mentality then so be it. I'd rather look at this rationally than join in with the crowd and get outraged on something I have no details on and just have to make up reasons to get outraged.

Of course, if you have actual facts on how Cameron's Dad avoided UK tax on his UK activities then I'll happily listen. But at the moment nothing has been shown.
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He avoided (at best) evaded tax by using an offshore company!
 
Kemik said:
But that's not what a lot of people in the thread are saying. It looks like they're saying if you are wealthy all of your income, globally, should be declared in the UK with tax paid at the marginal rate.
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Iain Cameron, Blairmore Inc.

A UK citizen set up an offshore company, held meetings outside of the UK for the specific reason of not paying tax in the UK.
 
Kemik said:
What's wrong with that?

If I set up a company in Ireland and held my board meetings in Ireland would you be going after me for the same thing?

If the company has operations in the UK then it will pay tax on its UK operations. If the UK citizen is resident in the UK then he will pay tax on the dividends or employment income from that company.
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The whole point of organisations like this is to hide your assets so you don't have to pay tax!
 
marmalade said:
Absolutely nothing illegal has taken place. It is up to Governments to legislate - in so far as they may. One could contend that there is a moral issue in not providing tax to the same painful extent as the working masses who have less possibility to "Save". Many people prefer to control their own outgoings rather than leave it to an incompetent bureaucrats/politicians to blatantly waste - UK's overseas aid is a wonderful example of waste. It was Leona Helmsley who put it so succinctly "Taxes are for the little people" -proportionately!
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Yet experts disagree with you.
 
Nice to see we are getting tough on tax issues at last. ;)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-35985360

Families who have been overpaid tax credits will have to repay the money at a much faster rate from now on, under government changes.

Tax credit claimants with a household income of more than £20,000 will see any historic overpayments clawed back at a much faster rate.

The UK tax authority said this would cut the time that people spent in debt.

But campaigners have argued that some claimants will face "serious financial hardship".
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I love that line.

Maybe these people can negotiate sweetheart deal?
 
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