Pandora papers leak: UK government urged to tighten laws
Highlights
- The UK government is being called on to tighten the country’s checks against “dirty money” post data leak from 14 offshore financial services companies.
- Pandora Papers is a cache of about 12 million files that includes secret information about the financial activities of renowned personalities.
- The Pandora Papers is a research product by a 600-reporter team organised by Washington’s International Consortium of Investigated Journalists (ICIJ).
The UK government is being called on to tighten the country’s checks against “dirty money” post leak of data from 14 offshore financial services companies. The data leak exposed details about the secret financial dealings of some of the most affluent people in the world.
What are Pandora Papers?
Pandora Papers is a cache of about 12 million files that includes information about the financial activities of nearly 35 world-renowned leaders, over 100 billionaires and 300 public officials. The documents have details of the financial dealings of these influential people with offshore financial services firms based out of Belize, Switzerland, and the British Virgin Islands, among others. The Pandora Papers is the latest instance of financial data leaks since 2013. It is a research product of efforts of a 600-reporter team arranged by the International Consortium of Investigated Journalists (ICIJ).
BBC Panorama & the Guardian’s role
In a joint investigation conducted by BBC Panorama and the Guardian, disclosures in the papers have details about affluent people legally establishing companies to purchase property in the UK secretly. The Guardian also highlighted London’s central coordinating role, as it houses several wealth managers, company formation agents, law firms, and accountants catering to wealthy and influential clients.
Post the release, the Crown Estate announced an investigation into the £67 million purchase of a London property from a company with links to the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev family. Crown Estate also clarified that before the purchase of 56–60 Conduit Street, they had conducted thorough checks as per the UK law.
Details of allegations on Blair’s
The former prime minister Tony Blair and his wife denied all allegations of wrongdoing, post Guardian and Panorama’s reports of saving over £300,000 in stamp duty after acquiring a London property for £6.45 million. The deal was a part of their purchase of the offshore firm that owned it. A spokesperson of the former minister clarified that since the purchase was of a company, it would not require the buyer to pay UK stamp duty on the transaction. Later, the Blairs repatriated the firm and purchased it onshore, thus making it eligible for capital gains and other taxes on the property’s resale that significantly exceeds stamp duty.
A ’wake-up call’?
According to Transparency International UK’s policy director, Duncan Hames, the latest disclosures would serve as a “wake up call” for the UK government and encourage measures to strengthen the country’s defences against “dirty money”. He also requested the UK government to increase efforts to tackle illegal financial dealings, thereby bringing transparency in reforms and putting an end to corrupt practices in the UK. Individuals establishing and leveraging from offshore accounts is not illegal. However, the mystery surrounding these accounts can aid fraud, money laundering and tax evasion.
