I have not given the so-called Pandora Papers that are exciting some of the media and the tax justice movement much attention. There are a number of reasons for that.
First, these papers do not seem to tell us anything very new. The wealthy, and some who are corrupt, used offshore to undertake nefarious activity. That is something we already knew.
Second, this leak is of relatively old data. We do not know much from it how things have changed in recent years as a result of measures now taken, and as a result I am not convinced that this information is in a real sense very useful.
Third, some of the revelations are pretty weak. For example, whilst I am not known to have any great love of Tony Blair's financial arrangements (I once won a prize for explaining them) to say that he did anything extraordinary by buying a UK business property wrapped in an offshore company is to simply point out that this is the way in which almost all UK commercial property is now traded. I suspect that every single major pension fund in the UK does this every day, but that fact is not being highlighted. The story here is not so much about Blair but about the failure of the government to tackle this, which is the real scandal.
Fourth, the funding of political parties from offshore is significant, but didn't we know that was happening?
Fifth, no one that I have seen so far is saying the UK is no better regulator of companies than most of tax haven locations, and that it also provides far too much corporate secrecy, which may well be much more damaging to our economy by permitting more domestic tax evasion than happens offshore. That is a serious omission by those making comment.
Sixth, there are much bigger issues tax justice should be looking at. Start with the national insurance increase; link them to universal credit cuts; build in the failure to effectively tackle wealth inequality by taxation; add in the need to tackle an austerity narrative and then tax justice would be hitting new targets, instead of raking old muck.
I very much doubt that tax justice can use this old material again. It is out of date. The real question now is not what did happen, but whether it has changed? The current reports are not addressing that question well enough.
And the second current issue is that it really is time for tax justice to move on and talk about what might well be more important in tax now. Tax haven reform is important. So is UK corporate reform. But I am not sure that these revelations are going to make much difference to either of those agendas now, and that's why I am hoping for better campaigning in the future.
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[…] Cross-posted from Tax Research UK […]
Point 6 is on the money
‘ Start with the national insurance increase; link them to universal credit cuts; build in the failure to effectively tackle wealth inequality by taxation; add in the need to tackle an austerity narrative and then tax justice would be hitting new targets, instead of raking old muck.’
Here is the cack handed Liberal Guardian still doing its usual to obfuscate, asking a question in such a tricksy way that reinforces the fairy tale of Money and Tax and Spending.
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/sep/28/how-much-poorer-would-the-rich-need-to-be-to-provide-a-basic-minimum-income-for-everyone
Fortunately more readers answers are addressing the fallacy – but the majority still go along with the narrative implied in the question.
As for the ‘new’ revelations – i think it is important to know about every politician and their families wealth and income garnered from their position – they should have registered it anyway. I don’t care if they have used ‘off-shore’ legal vehicles – unsavoury and tax avoiding as that may be – as long as it is admitted and on public record so that we can see their hypocrisy when they purvey the religious myth of Tax-Spend.
I wonder how much of the Biden agenda which is being supposedly stalled by Democrats elected on a manifesto to deliver it ; the brouhaha of the world wide Tax was about the revelations which appear to have been in the pipeline for a very long time indeed are related.
Yes – political party funding lobbying outcomes are also vital to be known about – because it is not just restricted to legislation such as that which made the House Builders mega rich and gave tax breaks to all sorts of schemes . It is also about citizens/subjects freedoms – as in the loss of free movement and single market and level playing field protections of the EU;
The Media monopolies that manufactures the Narratives;
And worse of all, illegal Wars and therefore murder of innocents abroad by our ‘heroes’ and their equal casualties, such as in Afghanistan/iraq under the lying, ‘I know what I believe is the Truth -Yo Blair’ NuLabInc ; and undeclared but fully engaged war on Syria, the support of Nazis in Ukraine and all sorts of secret engagements with Private Military Companies (which the U.K. had an inordinate number registered) under Cameron and Tories and their sleazy bed mates the Liberals.
Throw in the SNP , UKIP and now the Greens across Europe who are more pro nato than when the grass roots rose up through anti nuclear campaigning and environmental destruction.
I want to know who is giving the money to these politicians and enriching their families and if they are legally avoiding taxes whilst keeping the poor poor and the rich richer.
I don’t understand. Just because some people have known about it for a long time doesn’t mean it should be ignored, does it?
No, of course not
But the question when you have limited resources is whether concentrating this issue is the best sue of them – especially when so far I ma hearing very little about solutions to this issue
Its worth trying to build up a head of steam about tax havens and the City of London as the global hub….Even Anne Applebaum is asking why not stop it and John Macdonnell claims to have a plan….
https://twitter.com/anneapplebaum/status/1444735309577658371
Also why not continue to higlight Russian money buying the Conservative Party ……. as the chosen vehicle to undermine democracy
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/oct/01/boris-johnson-rigging-the-system-power-courts-protest-elections
No one is saying these things need nit be tackled
But if I am honest has anyone really learned anything new from this is what I am asking?
Barring the growth in South Dakota I am struggling to think what is new
[…] Pandora Papers continue to draw attention to tax abuse. As I mentioned yesterday, the real need is to mention solutions […]
One should never underestimate the importance of widespread publicity of the corruption, injustice and unfairness of the elite and a financial system that operates exclusively for its benefit. One should never overestimate the extent of public knowledge. Naming names provides the opportunity to do more than shrug the shoulders.
I have to admit I prefer ideas…
I would refer everyone to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) for a flavour of the significance of not merely the Pandora Papers, but other similar revelatory publications.
My contribution to this is reflected in The Irish Times this morning
It is naming and shaming what is going on with the Pandora Papers. The modus operandi is not really explained why and how things are structures this or the other way, there are no emails which show that knowingly a criminal action was planed/executed etc. Therefore, the important evidence is not there or not published. Yes, offshore companies are all legal but the iliegal part happens in the company and that makes the big difference and needs to be made public. On the other hand civil society needs to see again and again that high net worth individuals and multinationals are still in this business in order to request change. There is no doubt that the offshore industry is flowerishing because the Automatic Information Exchange forced certain people to restructer their assets I know this from my contacts. The simply Swiss Bank Account etc. is not that safe anymore as it used to be! What I like is the fact that so many politicians are involved in this business and it makes it crystal clear that any or at least many Parliaments are reluctant to change laws e.g. Swiss Parliament decided in March 2021 that lawyers, consultants (KPMG), advisers, Treuhänder (independent accountants) who administer clients do not fall under the Swiss the Money Laundering Act. In other words the Pandora Papers represent in my view mostly a political campagne to put real pressure on Parliaments. However, I am not naive “Parliaments are unfortunatelly moraly corrupt” because national interest requests this kind of corruption!!
Thanks Rudi
I hope you are well
You are right – there is n one of the ‘how to do it’ here which really does make me wonder where this leak came from and how much it was edited before being leaked….
[…] OECD has delivered real gains. The big omission now is not having accounts on public record, which I always demanded but which too many campaigners forgot, and still […]