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Friday, April 8, 2016

Cameron offshore trust row: PM accused of 'hypocrisy'

Labour has accused David Cameron of "hypocrisy" after he revealed he had owned shares in an offshore trust set up by his late father.
He said the firm, Blairmore Holdings, had not been set up to avoid tax.
Labour's deputy leader Tom Watson said the PM had called people who invested in similar schemes "morally wrong".

'More answers'

There have been days of headlines about Blairmore Holdings - a fund for investors which until 2006 used "bearer shares" to protect its clients' privacy - following the leak of 11 million documents held by Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca.
They show that Mr Cameron's father, Ian, was one of five UK directors who flew to board meetings in the Bahamas or Switzerland.
Downing Street and Mr Cameron had issued four statements on whether Mr Cameron had any financial involvement with Blairmore Holdings before the PM told ITV News on Thursday about the shares he had owned.
Mr Watson said Mr Cameron could not be blamed for his father's actions but added: "He can for hypocrisy. He said that sunlight is the best disinfectant and wasn't entirely straight with the British people about what his own financial arrangements were. 
"That wouldn't be so bad if he hadn't also been lecturing very prominent people about their own tax arrangements, some he called morally wrong for being invested in similar schemes.
"People don't like that and they want a lot more answers from David Cameron before this scandal goes away."

What Cameron said when

  • Asked on Monday whether she could confirm that no family money was still invested in the fund, Mr Cameron's spokeswoman said: "That is a private matter"
  • Then in an interview on Tuesday, Mr Cameron said: " I have no shares, no offshore trusts, no offshore funds, nothing like that. And, so that, I think, is a very clear description"
  • Downing Street issued a statement later that day: "To be clear, the prime minister, his wife and their children do not benefit from any offshore funds. The prime minister owns no shares. As has been previously reported, Mrs Cameron owns a small number of shares connected to her father's land, which she declares on her tax return"
  • No 10 then released a further clarifying statement on Wednesday, saying: "There are no offshore funds/trusts which the prime minister, Mrs Cameron or their children will benefit from in future"
  • On Thursday the PM told ITV News:"We owned 5,000 units in Blairmore Investment Trust, which we sold in January 2010"

Shadow Treasury minister Richard Burgon called on Mr Cameron to make a statement on his tax affairs to Parliament on Monday.
"He must now further clarify whether or not he or his family were benefiting directly or indirectly in 2013 when he was lobbying to prevent EU measures to better regulate trusts as a way to clamp down on tax avoidance," he said.
And SNP economy spokesman Stewart Hosie MP described it as "an astounding revelation by a prime minister who has questioned the morality of using such tax-avoiding schemes".
But James Quarmby, a specialist in tax planning and wealth structuring at law firm Stephenson Harwood, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme there was a "massive misunderstanding" about what Mr Cameron had invested in.
He said it was a hedge fund that was "about as boring as it gets for investments", adding that it would not be used for avoiding tax.
"It's no different from Mr Cameron investing in a UK stock," he said.
Thursday, Mr Cameron told ITV News: "I don't have anything to hide. I'm proud of my dad and what he did and the business he established... I can't bear to see his name being dragged through the mud."
Mr Cameron said much criticism was based on a "fundamental misconception" that Blairmore Investment was set up to avoid tax. 
"It wasn't. It was set up after exchange controls went, so that people who wanted to invest in dollar denominated shares and companies could do so, and there are many other, thousands of other unit trusts set up in this way," he said.
Downing Street said Mr and Mrs Cameron bought their holding in April 1997 for £12,497 and sold it in January 2010 for £31,500.
That year the personal allowance before capital gains tax was paid was £10,100 per person.

What are the Panama Papers?

A leak of 11.5 million documents has lifted the lid on how the rich and powerful use tax havens to hide their wealth.
The files were leaked from one of the world's most secretive companies, a Panamanian law firm called Mossack Fonseca.
Among the files are details about: 
Mossack Fonseca says it has operated beyond reproach for 40 years and never been accused or charged with criminal wrong-doing.



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