UK MPs unite to push for greater transparency from tax havens
From Tax Justice Network’s December 20 Taxcast.
In trusts we trust? We look at the new game in town: beneficial ownership avoidance, the booming industry in alternative escape vehicles from public registers and why we must shine the spotlight on all of them. Plus: we discuss two big stories we think will define 2017: the race to the bottom between nations on tax aka a transfer of wealth to the corporate community, and how the world’s biggest havens are increasingly having to account for the devastating effect their tax and/or financial secrecy policies are having on human rights around the world…TaxCast on Ownership Avoidance and the Great Escape
Chemists and Pharmacy GST Scam Alert
Tony Capon, assistant director, Fraud Investigation Service, HMRC, said: “Hughes lived in an expensive house, drove a Porsche Cayenne and travelled the world, but he never declared any legitimate income or business trading to HMRC.
"He operated a criminal network to smuggle, transport, store and sell illegal cigarettes and tobacco, purely to evade tax. This was a serious attempt on an industrial scale to steal millions of pounds from the public purse and undermine local businesses." 'Public Wi-Fi' gang fail in cunning plan to hide £10m cigarette tax fraud
Conflicts of Interest Not New to the Age of Trump: Many Politicians Voting for the TARP Bailout Protected Their Own Wealth
Conflicts of interest are not new to US politics; this paper shows how TARP votes tracked the stock portfolios of member of Congress.
Christine Lagarde found guilty of negligence (NYT). She won’t face a fine or jail sentence, however, and she may not have to leave the IMF
Declining Resources: Selected Agencies Took Steps to Minimize Effects on Mission but Opportunities Exist for Additional Action, GAO-17-79: Published: Dec 20, 2016. Publicly Released: Dec 20, 2016.
“How are agencies responding to smaller budgets? Federal discretionary spending, which funds activities like law enforcement training and worker protection programs, declined by about 12% between fiscal years 2010 and 2015. We looked at the efforts of three federal agencies to manage their declining resources by:
1) Leading from the top e.g., reorganizing staff to better deal with workloads,
2) Using data analytics to guide decisions e.g., making data-driven process improvements, and
3) Reducing costs e.g., consolidating real property.
We recommended three ways to enhance their efforts and developed a framework that other agencies can use….”
“The House Financial Services Committee’s Task Force to Investigate Terrorism Financing on Tuesday released a bipartisan report of its 12 month long probe into the threat terror financing poses to the U.S. financial system…“For the last two years, the Task Force has been examining ways to improve the federal government’s approach to combatting the flow of funds to terrorist groups. This report incorporates essential components of the Task Force’s strategy to address illicit terrorist financing activity, which threatens our national security, financial system, and the international trade system. Thank you to Task Force Chairman Fitzpatrick, Vice Chairman Pittenger, Chairman Hensarling, and Ranking Member Waters for recognizing that putting a stop to terrorist financing is critical to improving our national security. I look forward to continuing to work on a bipartisan basis in the 115th Congress to codify our approach to countering terrorism financing and hopefully augmenting the number of Treasury attachés who are on the front lines of this effort,” said Congressman Stephen F. Lynch (D-Boston)…”
- STOPPING TERROR FINANCE: SECURING THE U.S. FINANCIAL SECTOR REPORTPREPARED BY THE STAFF OF THE TASK FORCE TO INVESTIGATE TERRORISM FINANCING, COMMITTEE ON FINANCIAL SERVICES, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. MICHAEL FITZPATRICK CHAIRMAN, TASK FORCE TO INVESTIGATE TERRORISM FINANCING STEPHEN F. LYNCH, RANKING MEMBER, TASK FORCE TO INVESTIGATE TERRORISM FINANCING – 114TH CONGRESS, SECOND SESSION DECEMBER 20, 2016.