Tax Havens

Worth repeating from an article posted by Dj

The defining scandal of the age - "the poor pay for the deficit whilst the rich avoid" Morally so so wrong.

updates.oxfam.org.uk/c/1NExBL93GQTWXJEwvXMU0oake

Oxfam campaign to tell Cameron what to do about tax havens at the summit next month.
Do you think he will listen?

Cameron must know he can close these tax havens yet hasn't made any attempt , just keeps saying how he is going to stop this tax avoidance , now we have
Damien Green concerned for the loss of jobs there if we were to close them .

Why can he condemn Jimmy Carr for avoiding tax but say his family tax affairs are private , the man is corrupt

The total loss of tax from avoidance and evasion would solve all our financial problems. There would be no cuts to the NHS, councils, benefits, etc.
Why does the government not go for that?
Too much for us to find out?

A minority of people in this country use the tax system to avoid paying into the system, and will use money that is rightfully ours to keep cash for themselves. This includes the Prime Minister, even if it was his dad who set the system up and gained most from it.
By keeping money out of the tax system, they deny the right of others to benefit from the system. It is not a victimless crime, and the people who do it choose to deliberately.
What about the self-interest of the advisers as well?
All four big accountancy firms have offices in Panama. Why?

All four big accountancy firms have dedicated tax avoidance departments of at least 50/60 staff. I saw them admit to this when being grilled by a parliamentary committee.

Those that can afford to pay tax - escape paying

Those that can least afford it - have no option but to pay

I find the whole unfairness of it all- distasteful and upsetting.

How can a PM take money from the disabled yet accept thousands made in tax havens , it's sickening, this is not Tory bashing - as I have often been accused of doing - it's so wrong and there is no excuse anyone can make for it

Agreed Anniebach this is not Tory bashing, and is something that we should all be furious about irrespective of our political views and beliefs. On a lighter note, I am surprised that others are surprised that colleagues of Putin are involved, it is hardly a shock is it? But, getting back to the point, I would like to see a list of all those who have taken advantage of these schemes, as I understand it, it is not illegal to have an account offshore, but it is illegal not to declare that you have one. Why on earth would anyone need a secretive account other than for purposes of tax evasion or for laundering criminal proceeds? I expect, and certainly hope, that a few people have had restless nights, wondering when their name will be disclosed.
Even the right wing press are on their case.

GILL, even the editor of the Mail said - it is legal but it is immoral , and this is what angers me, I don't care what the persons politics are, it is the fact that they are dodging tax , just how much have they robbed us of, a young girl with MS loses her mobility car and that's accepted by many , I am just so angry about this, we all know tax avoiding goes on but this scale ? and the PM knew

I don't understand why this has only just made the news...I've known for a long time about David Cameron's fathers links with tax avoidance schemes and thought it was common knowledge....although I didn't know the precise details.

I agree, it's a disgrace, it should be illegal, it certainly immoral. Be interesting to see whether the ground swell of anger in Iceland will be enough to oust their PM.

General opinion is that he will have to go.

tegan yes you are right but as I said in a previous post we now have actual evidence as apposed to supposition.

It was known Cammeron Snr had oversea investments, it was not known he had a company for thirty years and flew out just to hold board meetings

Interested in hearing that DC has stated that he owns no personal shares. Well Blairmore ( love the name?) is controlled not by shares in the ordinary sense. It is controlled by an obscure financial instrument called bearer shares, which are used similar to banknotes. These have been abolished in many countries as they are used extensively by mobsters and money launderers.

He has Lord Ashcroft to advise him on how to dodge the truth ,

So if DC holds no off shore shares or trust what happened to his fathers share of the company on his death?

Dave received thousands , but the shares ? He has been asked if they with his family and his reply is - I have no personal shares, - his wife, mother , brother could , so another dodgy answer

Yes the FT says that he needs to come clean on this one as unless he does he will be judged as a total hypocrite. He undoubtedly benefited from a tax avoidance and possible tax evasion (see activities in 2006 of Blairmore) income, in his upbringing and elite education at Eton and Oxford.

However his fathers will covering those off shore activities has not been made public as it was deemed not belonging in the UK - hmmm? So what happened to that on his death is not clear.

If all benefit stopped to DC then he has clearly forged his own farrow, except a bit of humbleness wouldn't go amiss relating to the benefit he did obtain from tax avoidance/evasion.

I am an ordinary UK citizen. A fiercely patriotic Scot - if I have money to invest (a very rare occurrence) or donate or purchases to make, I will look first at companies or producers in Scotland and failing that will then look at UK wide or Welsh, English, NI companies or producers. If there is no UK based supplier, I am willing to consider a foreign company who have at least a factory or depot here, employing people and PAYING THEIR UK TAXES - e.g. I have never and will never buy anything from Amazon. It makes sense to me to use my monetary support as locally as possible to help boost our economy, provide jobs, etc. which will ultimately provide some small benefit to me and mine.

I cannot understand the mind set of people who inherited or earned their wealth in this country and yet go to great trouble to invest it 'elsewhere' just to earn an extra few bob and then declare themselves so proud to be British and to sit in the Houses of Commons or Lords.

No doubt more will come out about this company ( From the leaks) and who has done what.It's sifting out the illegal from the legal, although we didn't expect much from the likes of Putin and friends, or any dictators. I had heard this about Cameron's father some years ago, so it's not a new revelation, and although embarrassing for him, we can't all be taken to task for the financial doings of our Dads( thankfully.) Time that this country at least, did something to prevent the downright dodgy or illegal goings on in offshore companies .You can never prevent the legal aspect though, all people with any wealth / business will employ an accountant to get the most from their money.This may be one of those 'something must be done' affairs ( and then nothing is done.) We shall see!

I am sure you are right rose there will be a lot of hot air and very little action. But like the expenses scandal mud sticks and this will be remembered and should be remembered by all those honest tax payers who are undoubtedly paying more than necessary.

Cameron has an older brother who inherited the family home, and business.
I think Blairmore comes from the Scottish ancestral home, but I do not know if it is still in the family.
He was asked about the family, but only answered about himself.
I wonder how many shares are in his wife's name.

He has said he has no shares etc, No 10 has said the family's affairs are a private matter , so that's sorted , slippery bunch of worms

I wonder if there's a reward for the first investigative journalist who finds out anything.
They'll all be hunting now.

Actually, what is just as bad, if not worse, is the number of companies linked to arms dealing that are set up in Panama or the BVI.

Guardian Headline, Cameron ducks question about benefiting from offshore trust.

Daily Mail Headline, “David Cameron denies he gets any income from his late father’s tax haven company.”

Two different ways of looking at it.