Mr Cameron wrote to 10 crown dependencies and overseas territories, such as Bermuda, Gibraltar, the Cayman Islands, Jersey and the Isle of Man, all of which operate low-tax regimes, saying that while he backs their right to be low tax jurisdictions, the rules need to be set and enforced.
The Prime Minister is to push for an agreement on clamping down on tax evasion and avoidance at the G8 summit and has said that he wants the group of countries to “knock down the walls of company secrecy”.
In his letter Mr Cameron said that this is the critical moment for the overseas territories and crown dependencies, some of which have been described by the Government as having “complex tax arrangements”, to continue to work in partnership with the UK in taking the lead on tax information exchange and beneficial ownership.
Because they operate low tax regimes and have lighter regulations, many of these territories have become very attractive to international businesses, but the lack of transparency in their tax dealings has led to suspicions that they are being used to evade tax.
Mr Cameron welcomed commitments by the territories to exchange tax information but said that its quality and accuracy needs to be improved to find out who “really owns and controls each and every company”.
He has asked the territories to sign international protocols designed to allow tax information to be shared more easily between countries and to provide fully resourced and properly managed centralised registries that are feely available to law enforcement and tax collectors.
For more information, please contact Glazers, Chartered Accountants London or visit www.glazers.co.uk
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