#alternate publisher HuffPost Search David Cameron Reaches Agreement With British 'Tax Havens' Like Jersey, Cayman Islands On Tax Evasion David Cameron Reaches Agreement With British 'Tax Havens' Like Jersey, Cayman Islands On Tax Evasion HuffPost's QuickRead... Loading... HuffPost's QuickRead... Loading... * David Cameron * Mehdi's Morning Memo iOS app Android app More Log in Create Account * Notifications * + Profile + Settings + Logout [backtoaol.png] 31 December 2013 uk-politics UK Edition: UK * CA Canada * DE Deutschland * ES España * FR France * IT Italia * JP 日本 (Japan) * MG Maghreb * UK United Kingdom * US United States Follow Search The Huffingto Submit * FRONT PAGE * News * Politics + Farage: Give Syrians Aslyum (If They Are Christian)131 + Secret Blair-Bush Iraq Talks To Be Published88 + Migrants To Be Charged To Use Emergency Services48 + 10 Politicians To Watch In 2014 + Tories May Propose Leaving European Convention On Human Rights76 + Go to Politics More in Politics + Boris Johnson + Conservatives + Labour + Lib Dems + Ukip + Westminster + Mehdi's Morning Memo * Business * Sport + Michael Schumacher In 'Critical Condition'12 + Michael Schumacher In Skiing Accident23 + Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow? Huddlestone Ends Goal Drought And Gets A Cut (PICTURES) + Now He's Booing The Players? Cartoon Villain Tan's Latest Pantomime Act + Mourinho Wins Another Battle As Chelsea Beat Liverpool + Go to Sport More in Sport + Transfer Talk + Football + Premier League + Champions League + Man Utd + Liverpool FC + England Football Team + England Cricket Team You might also like + US Sports * Tech + WATCH: This Robot Cube Can Walk, Rotate, Balance And Jump + Go to Tech More in Tech + Gadget Guides + PS4 + Xbox One + Apple + Google + Facebook + Space + Connectivity You might also like + TechCrunch + Engadget * Students + I'm an Intern, Not an Idiot + Go to Students More in Students + A-Level Results + Young Talent + Student News + Student Jobs + Student Living + International Students + Tuition Fees + GCSEs + Freshers' Week * Entertainment + Steamy Luisa Makes A Splash11 + 'I'd Rather Be Skinny Than A Role Model' + Who Is The Cheeky Star? + 'X Factor' Winner 'Enters Rehab'39 + Abbey's Post-'Strictly' Getaway + Go to Entertainment More in Entertainment + X Factor + Strictly + Borgen + Doctor Who + Celebrity Pictures + How Showbiz Are You? + Baggers Bites + TV Reviews + Film + Music * Celebrity * Comedy + Yes, This Is About To Go Horribly Wrong... + WATCH: 10 Problems Only Short Girls Understand + 14 Official 2014 Calendars We're Not Sure The World Needs + WATCH: 2013's Best News Bloopers + The Financial Damage In 'Die Hard' + Go to Comedy More in Comedy + Weird News + Comedy Gossip + Funny Videos + Twitter Funnies + Viral Videos + Funny Animals + Pics & Giggles + TopicaLOL * Lifestyle + New Year's Resolutions: Inspiring Quotes To Start 2014 + Best Moments For Women In 2013: Malala Yousafzai, Jennifer Lawrence And #FBRape + How Much Money Can A Packed Lunch Save You Each Month? + It's Official: New Year's Eve Is Over-Hyped And Too Expensive + Go to Lifestyle More in Lifestyle + Dating & Relationships + Women + Wellbeing + Diet & Fitness + Health + Food + Travel + Third Metric You might also like + Style * BLOGS + Aaron Vallely Aaron Vallely :The State of Ireland 2013 + Andrew Smith Andrew Smith :Whose Recovery Is It Anyway? The Appalling Inequality Behind Britain's Two-Tier Economy + Alastair Sloan Alastair Sloan :In 2014 - Can We Stop Blaming Everything on Muslims? + Dr Mark Esposito Dr Mark Esposito :Happy New Year EU! May 2014 Be the End of Your Ages... + Dr Harry Hagopian Dr Harry Hagopian :2010-2013: Three Years in the Lifetime of a MENA Region View all featured blog posts Politics * Boris Johnson * Conservatives * Labour * Lib Dems * Ukip * Westminster * Mehdi's Morning Memo David Cameron Reaches Agreement With British 'Tax Havens' Like Jersey, Cayman Islands On Tax Evasion The Huffington Post UK | Posted: 15/06/2013 15:57 BST | Updated: 15/06/2013 15:57 BST reddit stumble Share on Google+ Get UK Politics Newsletters: Enter email_________ Subscribe Follow: islands & beaches, David Cameron, Tax Avoidance, Tax Evasion, UK Politics, Enough Food For Everyone, G8, Guernsey, Jersey, Oxfam, Tax Havens, UK NEWS, UK Politics News British 'tax havens' like the Cayman Islands and Jersey have agreed to 'get their house in order' in a new deal on tax evasion secured by the Prime Minister ahead of the G8 summit. David Cameron said Britain's network of overseas territories and Crown dependencies have signed up to a new clampdown on tax evasion, aimed at promoting transparency and exchange of information between tax jurisdictions. Many of the islands and outposts, like Jersey and the Cayman Islands, are regarded as tax havens - a description they bitterly dispute - where wealthy individuals can shield their fortunes from the prying eyes of onshore tax authorities. tax haven Luke Harman and Mark Webber, dressed as bankers, sit on The Isle of Shady, a pop-up tax haven set up by Enough Food for Everyone IF campaigners The Prime Minister hailed the agreement as a "very positive step forward" which would strengthen his hand in talks with the other G8 leaders in which he has made improving international tax compliance a key issue. The Prime Minister said they had had a "very good" meeting. "Let's be clear why this tax issue matters. If companies don't pay their taxes or individuals don't pay their taxes we all suffer as a result," he said. "It is important we are getting our house in order. What the Crown dependencies - places like Jersey and the Isle of Man, and the overseas territories - places like the Cayman Islands - have signed up to is basically the existing and the new standards for exchanging tax information. That is absolutely vital. "It is a very positive step forward and it means that Britain's voice in the G8 and the campaigning on this issue around the world for proper taxes, proper companies and proper laws ... will be stronger." Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Gibraltar, Anguilla, Montserrat, the Turks and Caicos Islands, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man were all represented at the talks. Cameron talks about Jersey etc. as if they are not under his authority. These tax havens are still subject to UK law which can be changed. — John Lipnicki (@john_lipnicki) June 15, 2013 Under the agreement, they will trial an international pilot programme which will see the automatic exchange of information between tax jurisdictions while also signing up to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) convention on mutual assistance on tax. They also agreed to publish national action plans on beneficial ownership - declaring the true owners of so-called "shell" companies. In a joint statement, the chief ministers of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man said they welcomed Cameron's willingness to work in partnership with them on improving international standards. "We are committed to continuing to play a leading role in delivering a responsible and effectively regulated global business environment and in tackling the global problem of tax evasion," he said. g8 Police officers wearing G8 branded caps patrol streets of the city centre in Belfast Earlier, Cameron announced plans to establish a register of beneficial ownership in the UK as part of his drive for transparency on tax. "We need to know more about who owns which company - beneficial ownership - because that is how a lot of people and a lot of companies avoid tax, using secretive companies in secretive locations," he said. "The way to sweep away the secrecy and get to the bottom of tax avoidance and tax evasion and cracking down on corruption is to have a register of beneficial ownerships so the tax authorities can see who owns beneficially every company." Under the proposals, UK-registered companies will have a legal obligation to obtain and hold adequate, accurate and current information on the ultimate owner who benefits from the company. The information would be entered on a central register that would be maintained by Companies House. Initially, the information would only be made available in Britain to authorities such as Revenue and Customs, but ministers are to consult on whether it should be made public. Speaking at a pre-summit conference at Lancaster House, the Prime Minister indicated that while he would like to make the register public, it would depend on other nations being prepared to follow suit. "The most important thing here is that that information is available to tax authorities. It will be their first port of call to try to uncover corrupt payments or tax evasion," he said. "Personally, I would hope the whole world will move towards public registers of beneficial ownership, but I want to maximise the leverage that the UK has got over others in terms of each step in turn. "Also, I want to make sure that business and enterprise comes with us on this debate." The agreement was cautiously welcomed by poverty campaigners like Oxfam, Save The Children and ActionAid. We've won again! All 10 UK tax havens have agreed to sign a multilateral agreement that will help tackle tax dodging. #IF — Stephen Brown (@LordBrownof) June 15, 2013 The acid test of the #G8 will be if @David_Cameron clamps down on tax haven secrecy so poor countries can free themselves from hunger #BigIF — Enough Food IF (@EnoughFoodIF) June 15, 2013 .@David_Cameron commits to make progress on tax - beneficial ownership and automatic exchange of information #G8TTT — Justin Forsyth (@justinforsyth) June 15, 2013 Cameron's announcement came as a mass anti-G8 rally took place in Belfast, ahead of the G8 summit. Around 1,500 protesters marched in torrential rain from the city's Custom House, past borded up shop fronts. Spirits were high and there were initially no signs of the disorder that some in Belfast had feared. Hundreds of public order police officers flanked the route with scores of fortified Land Rover-type vehicles also parked up and police helicopters circled overhead. The G8 leaders are arriving at the Lough Erne golf resort in Fermanagh for the two-day meeting starting on Monday. * Contribute to this Story: * Send us a tip * Send us a photo or video * Suggest a correction FOLLOW UK POLITICS Like [DEL: :DEL] 22k Enter email_________ Subscribe Around the Web: [favicon.ico] Cameron's hopes of tax haven crackdown disappear into Bermuda ... [favicon.ico] With tax evasion on G8 agenda, Cameron eyes Britain's own havens ... [favicon.ico] Tax Havens: Cameron Warns Over Transparency - Sky News [favicon.ico] David Cameron's G8 tax evasion battle under fire over tax havens ... [favicon.ico] 'Tax havens' agree to clampdown [favicon.ico] Cameron calls in tax havens ahead of G8 summit in June [favicon.ico] David Cameron's G8 tax evasion battle under fire over tax havens [favicon.ico] Jersey firm defends island's tax regime [favicon.ico] Britain presses its territories on tax action before G8 Most Popular Steamy Luisa Makes A Splash Luisa Zissman Luisa Zissman/Twitter New Year's Resolutions: Inspiring Quotes To Start 2014 Woman Idea Tara Moore via Getty Images 'X Factor' Winner 'Enters Rehab' Matt Cardle Simon Burchell via Getty Images Giant Sink Hole Opens In The Derbyshire Peak District Near Foolow Sink Hole F Stop Press 'It's Getting Very Boring Now, Hun' Sam Bailey Katie Hopkins Rex 'I'd Rather Be Skinny Than A Role Model' Luisa Zissman Flynet Are These The New 'Celebrity Big Brother' Housemates? Celebrity Big Brother PA Who Is The Cheeky Star? Katie Price Twitter 'Must Like Sex' Escort Jobs Direct Gov Did Someone Get A Tattoo Of Ian Watkins' Mugshot? Ian Watkins reddit You'll Never Believe What This Chap Has Done To His Dog... Paul Dutton Nazi SWNS Beirut Bombing 'Selfie' Teen Dies (WARNING GRAPHIC) Beirut Bomb Teen Twitter Do Satirical TV Shows Encourage Abuse Towards Politicians? Have I Got News For You BBC Was 2013 The Year The EDL Died? Edl JUSTIN TALLIS via Getty Images Teenage Woman Found On Fire Dies Police Tape Joe Giddens/PA Wire Mother ‘Tried To Sell Baby' On Gumtree For £150,000 Baby Advert Gumtree Gumtree Man 'High On Meth Fights Off 15 Police Officers While Masturbating' Frey Marion County Sheriff's Office Follow HuffPost * Email * Facebook * Twitter * Google Plus * RSS * Mobile * Enter your email____ Sign me up! [X] HuffPost Daily Brief [X] UK Politics Get top stories and blogs posts emailed to you each day. * 1. UK Politics * 1. UK Politics Follow * 1. UK Politics * 1. UK Politics 2. View all RSS feeds * 1. 2. 3. uk-london24 William goes back to university to study agriculture at Cambridge New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day London travel - Tube, Overground, rail New Year: Londoners most likely to still be over the limit at 10pm on January 1 More News at London24.com Search The Huffington Post_____ Search * Advertise | * * Make HuffPost your Home Page | * RSS | * Careers | * FAQ * User Agreement | * Privacy | * Cookie Policy | * Comment Policy | * About Us | * About Our Ads | * Contact Us * "The Huffington Post UK" is provided by AOL (UK) Limited. © 2013 AOL (UK) Limited its affiliates and licensors * Part of HuffPost Politics Quantcast HuffPost Lightbox