The Paradise Papers.

Bl4ckGryph0n

My companion has off shore investments handled by third parties and we watched it last night. It’s all legal and has been going on for years.
It is true you need a hell of a lot of money to access them and it’s not cheap but as she pointed out banks who invest do the same thing all be it they make a good earning while the payout is min to savers.
Shes also worked in the government and its interesting how the politicians will move their money into funds like trusts who then invest meaning said politician has no idea where their money is invested and have protection against it.

SteakAndCake

Really don’t understand why people get angry about this.

tapzilla2k

It sounds like we need some form of ethical banking guide in the same way we do with Fair Trade and food.  Give people the choice as to where their money is invested regardless of legality.

SteakAndCake

She invested (through her advisor's) in Brighthouse, a company that's been forced to pay compensation to thousands of customers with mental health or learning disabilities as Brighthouse signed them up to loans with high interest rates meaning they've paid way over the odds for goods. They've been told to clean up their act or risk losing their consumer credit license. That's a PR disaster for the Royal Family, profiteering off the poor. But what this will bring up is the fact the Queen doesn't have to pay any tax being the Monarch and we don't really have transparency about what she's really worth or what her investments are. All we get is the "She's voluntary paid tax" on the things the royal accounts deem to show us.

You should care, the malign influence of money on Politics is clear to see if you look closely enough. It's more acute in the US where there are virtually no limits on election spending.

Yes but this is on an industrial scale. Somebody has to cover the shortfall in taxation and it's usually the poor and the working classes who foot the bill. Everyone is subsidising the Super Rich to not pay tax in one way or another. We could disrupt this overnight if we wanted to, but we won't. It's not hard to see why an Italian Mafia expert called the City of London the most corrupt place on the planet.

One of the main attractions of British Tax Havens is English Common Law. Places like Panama are like the wild west in comparison.

If people bothered to vote in larger numbers then things might begin to change.

Then you aren't really paying attention to what the Super Rich are doing with their money beyond avoiding paying tax. Once you do, you'll see how corrupt things have become and that has an impact on our daily lives in ways you might not notice.

In the end all this tax evasion by the Super Rich will lead to revolutions in some parts of the world. That's not bluster or hyperbole, that's generally what tends to happen when a minority horde a resource (in this case wealth) from the majority, history is littered with it. Civilisation is a fragile thing, something people tend to forget too often it seems.  

We got off lightly compared to the German Taxpayers who've had to shore up the Eurozone

Bl4ckGryph0n

I'd imagine it's because of Austerity and the slashing of public services which has been blamed on the EU and migrants when in fact, those earning the most money, are paying less tax than ever resulting in less funding to run this country.

Bl4ckGryph0n

How do you know nothing happened after the Panama filed? Whilst it’s not illegal to have investments abroad, don’t be mistaken for a minute that it doesn’t attract the attention of various agencies who would love to know where the money comes from and keep building their case.

I could tell you but I’d have to kill you

NewfieDrool

Vent the anger then at those making the rules, not those abiding by them

SteakAndCake

To be honest one investment company needs a min of 1mil to even entertain you.
Some banks also require around the same amount to hold accounts with them.
It’s all taxed when it enters the U.K. again.

Personally it’s risky, to have it tied up safely costs and you can already find Financial advisors and investors who would take the gamble and invest your money in such a way that it ends up offshore but you could soon lose out.
My companion could never tell you what her money is actually invested in or what shares it’s invested in but she does know a large majority is moved to areas where the income is larger and is able to expand without the penalties applied in UK investments.
All the reports you have seen on TV never mention several names of individuals or organisations open to individuals that have Capital adding that to the amount that said organisations will handle.
It’s all legal, been done for years under different governments and is nothing new.

Jezza99

Various underfunded agencies.  HMRC won't mount a multi-year investigation into a large multi-national that can outspend it legally when it can just go after a hundred SME owners instead.

The Dark Horse

Is this really a shock to anyone?