Financial centres slam Paradise Papers backlash
By Kirsten Hastings, 7 Nov 17
The UK’s crown dependencies and overseas territories have hit back at international media scrutiny and allegations that they facilitate tax avoidance and evasion following the leak of the Paradise Papers.
The leak of the Paradise Papers was part of an orchestrated political campaign to make the UK and its crown dependencies and overseas territories look bad ahead of the Brexit negotiations, Guernsey’s most senior politician has said.
Deputy Gavin St Pier told the BBC that the timing of the release of the trove of 13.4 million documents from Bermuda-headquartered law firm Appleby was designed to serve the EU’s Brexit agenda.
“The council for EU finance ministers is meeting [Tuesday] in Brussels, they will all come out this afternoon and piously and earnestly say how important it is that the UK cleans up its act with the overseas territories and crown dependencies,” St Pier said.
In a separate interview with BBC Radio Five Live’s Wake up to Money programme, he added: “Reporting has been misleading, sensational and simplistic. This is manufactured news.”
Appleby also believes that the leak was politically motivated. “There is no wrongdoing. It is a patchwork quilt of unrelated allegations with a clear political agenda and movement against offshore,” the law firm said in a statement reported by Bermuda news service Bernews.
Appleby reiterated that “our firm was not the subject of a leak but of a serious criminal act”.
“Recent media coverage, including the Panorama programme aired on 5 November, continues to focus on the offshore sector. The journalists do not allege, nor could they, that Appleby has done anything unlawful.”
Tags: Bermuda | Cayman Islands | Crown Dependencies | Guernsey | Isle Of Man | Jersey | Paradise Papers
