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07 Jul 15
19:06
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05 Apr 06
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http://www.channel4.com/news/george-osborne-family-business-6m-deal-with-offshore-firm
Chancellor George Osborne's family business made £6m in a property deal with a developer based in a tax haven, a Channel 4 News investigation has found.
Wallpaper firm Osborne & Little teamed up with a secretive corporation in the British Virgin Islands to draw up plans to redevelop its former London headquarters into housing, write Guy Basnett and Paul McNamara.
The companies jointly applied for planning permission for around 45 flats and houses, and once given the go ahead, Osborne & Little sold its site to the offshore firm for £6,088,000.
A legal expert shown contracts obtained by Channel 4 News said Osborne & Little must have known the developer was based offshore, and had the potential to avoid millions in tax.
Personal benefit
At the time, the chancellor was the beneficiary of a family trust that owned at least 15 per cent of Osborne & Little, so would have personally benefited from the sale. It is not known what the chancellor's personal stake was.
The deal calls into question his commitment to clamping down on offshore firms avoiding tax, a practice he has gone on to publicly condemn as “morally repugnant”.
The offshore company, called Nightingale Mews Incorporated, went on to redevelop the site, in Denning Mews, Clapham, and is estimated to have avoided up to £2m in tax on its profits.
There is no suggestion the chancellor or Osborne & Little avoided any tax in the deal, or that they or offshore property developer Nightingale Mews Inc. did anything illegal.
The Channel 4 News revelations come as the chancellor prepares to deliver tomorrow's summer budget, which is expected to include far-reaching cuts to services in a bid to reduce the deficit. In contrast, campaigners are urging him to regain funds by tackling tax avoidance by the rich.
News
Details of the property deal emerged in a series of documents obtained by Channel 4 News. They show the wallpaper business entered into an agreement with BVI-based Nightingale Mews Incorporated to redevelop its headquarters in Temperley Road, Clapham, south London, in 2004.
A confidential contract stated that the two firms would submit a joint planning application to Wandsworth Borough Council for around 40,000 square feet of residential housing. The gated mews street would be named Nightingale Mews.
Planners approved a scheme for 16 homes and 26 flats in January 2005, and a deal for Osborne & Little to sell the land was signed in May 2005 by George Osborne's father Sir Peter Osborne.
http://www.channel4.com/news/george-osborne-family-business-6m-deal-with-offshore-firm
Chancellor George Osborne's family business made £6m in a property deal with a developer based in a tax haven, a Channel 4 News investigation has found.
Wallpaper firm Osborne & Little teamed up with a secretive corporation in the British Virgin Islands to draw up plans to redevelop its former London headquarters into housing, write Guy Basnett and Paul McNamara.
The companies jointly applied for planning permission for around 45 flats and houses, and once given the go ahead, Osborne & Little sold its site to the offshore firm for £6,088,000.
A legal expert shown contracts obtained by Channel 4 News said Osborne & Little must have known the developer was based offshore, and had the potential to avoid millions in tax.
Personal benefit
At the time, the chancellor was the beneficiary of a family trust that owned at least 15 per cent of Osborne & Little, so would have personally benefited from the sale. It is not known what the chancellor's personal stake was.
The deal calls into question his commitment to clamping down on offshore firms avoiding tax, a practice he has gone on to publicly condemn as “morally repugnant”.
The offshore company, called Nightingale Mews Incorporated, went on to redevelop the site, in Denning Mews, Clapham, and is estimated to have avoided up to £2m in tax on its profits.
There is no suggestion the chancellor or Osborne & Little avoided any tax in the deal, or that they or offshore property developer Nightingale Mews Inc. did anything illegal.
The Channel 4 News revelations come as the chancellor prepares to deliver tomorrow's summer budget, which is expected to include far-reaching cuts to services in a bid to reduce the deficit. In contrast, campaigners are urging him to regain funds by tackling tax avoidance by the rich.
News
Details of the property deal emerged in a series of documents obtained by Channel 4 News. They show the wallpaper business entered into an agreement with BVI-based Nightingale Mews Incorporated to redevelop its headquarters in Temperley Road, Clapham, south London, in 2004.
A confidential contract stated that the two firms would submit a joint planning application to Wandsworth Borough Council for around 40,000 square feet of residential housing. The gated mews street would be named Nightingale Mews.
Planners approved a scheme for 16 homes and 26 flats in January 2005, and a deal for Osborne & Little to sell the land was signed in May 2005 by George Osborne's father Sir Peter Osborne.
Show More
There is no suggestion the chancellor or Osborne & Little avoided any tax in the deal, or that they or offshore property developer Nightingale Mews Inc. did anything illegal.
but
A legal expert shown contracts obtained by Channel 4 News said Osborne & Little must have known the developer was based offshore, and had the potential to avoid millions in tax.
but
A legal expert shown contracts obtained by Channel 4 News said Osborne & Little must have known the developer was based offshore, and had the potential to avoid millions in tax.
So after all that digging they didn't actually come up with anything?
Tax haven
Barrister David Quentin, a senior adviser to the Tax Justice Network, said Osborne & Little must have been aware that Nightingale Mews Inc. was based in a tax haven.
He said: "It's quite clear that we're dealing with an offshore company. If you look at this agreement, you see that the buyer company is named and then it's expressly described as incorporated in the British Virgin Islands."
He added, by being based offshore, the company could have avoided any tax on profits it made. "Instead of paying UK tax on that profit, it would be able to realise that profit tax free," he said.
£8m profit
The development was later renamed Denning Mews, with analysis of Land Registry records showing the upmarket flats and houses were sold for around £20m. It is estimated the profit may have been up to £8m, with the developer able to legally avoid up to £2m in corporation tax by being based in a tax haven.
Following the sale of the new homes, Nightingale Mews Inc. was dissolved, in 2010. It is virtually impossible to know who was behind the British Virgin Islands company, which is registered to a PO Box in a legal office on the Caribbean island of Tortola.
As well as branding "aggressive tax avoidance" as "morally repugnant" in his 2012 budget speech, George Osborne has promised to clamp down on properties owned by offshore firms.
The government introduced an annual levy on those that were, but campaigners say the fee, which raised just £73m last year, has done little to dissuade wealthy investors.
Channel 4 News asked the chancellor if he was aware of the deal, and aware of the agreement to sell to an offshore company – and put to him that the taxpayer could have lost millions of pounds. His office refused to answer any questions and said only: "This is a totally bogus and desperate story."
'Commercial basis'
Sir Peter Osborne, managing director of Osborne & Little, said the wallpaper company "is not in the business of property development and simply sold the property on a commercial basis".
He said all relevant taxes on the sale of the London site were paid, adding: "The company retained no benefit in any future development of the property and the directors have no knowledge of the success or otherwise of the redevelopment."
Sir Peter said the directors of Osborne & Little "cannot comment on the tax affairs of another company, whose tax residence, rather than country of incorporation, is not known to them".
News
An analysis by Channel 4 News shows 73,853 commercial and residential properties in England and Wales were registered in tax havens since 2009.
While half the homes on Grosvenor Crescent in London's Belgravia - named by a Lloyds Bank study as the most expensive street in the country - were found to be registered to tax havens.
Barrister David Quentin, a senior adviser to the Tax Justice Network, said Osborne & Little must have been aware that Nightingale Mews Inc. was based in a tax haven.
He said: "It's quite clear that we're dealing with an offshore company. If you look at this agreement, you see that the buyer company is named and then it's expressly described as incorporated in the British Virgin Islands."
He added, by being based offshore, the company could have avoided any tax on profits it made. "Instead of paying UK tax on that profit, it would be able to realise that profit tax free," he said.
£8m profit
The development was later renamed Denning Mews, with analysis of Land Registry records showing the upmarket flats and houses were sold for around £20m. It is estimated the profit may have been up to £8m, with the developer able to legally avoid up to £2m in corporation tax by being based in a tax haven.
Following the sale of the new homes, Nightingale Mews Inc. was dissolved, in 2010. It is virtually impossible to know who was behind the British Virgin Islands company, which is registered to a PO Box in a legal office on the Caribbean island of Tortola.
As well as branding "aggressive tax avoidance" as "morally repugnant" in his 2012 budget speech, George Osborne has promised to clamp down on properties owned by offshore firms.
The government introduced an annual levy on those that were, but campaigners say the fee, which raised just £73m last year, has done little to dissuade wealthy investors.
Channel 4 News asked the chancellor if he was aware of the deal, and aware of the agreement to sell to an offshore company – and put to him that the taxpayer could have lost millions of pounds. His office refused to answer any questions and said only: "This is a totally bogus and desperate story."
'Commercial basis'
Sir Peter Osborne, managing director of Osborne & Little, said the wallpaper company "is not in the business of property development and simply sold the property on a commercial basis".
He said all relevant taxes on the sale of the London site were paid, adding: "The company retained no benefit in any future development of the property and the directors have no knowledge of the success or otherwise of the redevelopment."
Sir Peter said the directors of Osborne & Little "cannot comment on the tax affairs of another company, whose tax residence, rather than country of incorporation, is not known to them".
News
An analysis by Channel 4 News shows 73,853 commercial and residential properties in England and Wales were registered in tax havens since 2009.
While half the homes on Grosvenor Crescent in London's Belgravia - named by a Lloyds Bank study as the most expensive street in the country - were found to be registered to tax havens.
Subject: "Osbourne Family avoided massive tax"
Body: "There is no suggestion the chancellor or Osborne & Little avoided any tax in the deal"
Errr.
Channel 4 news, "Guardian TV", throwing mud at the Tories? Get away!
Body: "There is no suggestion the chancellor or Osborne & Little avoided any tax in the deal"
Errr.
Channel 4 news, "Guardian TV", throwing mud at the Tories? Get away!
Thread Title was a mistake but :
A legal expert shown contracts obtained by Channel 4 News said Osborne & Little must have known the developer was based offshore, and had the potential to avoid millions in tax.
A legal expert shown contracts obtained by Channel 4 News said Osborne & Little must have known the developer was based offshore, and had the potential to avoid millions in tax.
thought this was going to be about Ozzie and Sharon ...
From the Channel Four article:
Sir Peter Osborne, managing director of Osborne & Little, said the wallpaper company "is not in the business of property development and simply sold the property on a commercial basis".
He said all relevant taxes on the sale of the London site were paid, adding: "The company retained no benefit in any future development of the property and the directors have no knowledge of the success or otherwise of the redevelopment."
Sir Peter said the directors of Osborne & Little "cannot comment on the tax affairs of another company, whose tax residence, rather than country of incorporation, is not known to them".
I think this kind of investigative journalism is a useful way of keeping such people honest but Channel Four haven't really presented much in the way of raw meat here and end up looking a little desperate if that is all they have.
Sir Peter Osborne, managing director of Osborne & Little, said the wallpaper company "is not in the business of property development and simply sold the property on a commercial basis".
He said all relevant taxes on the sale of the London site were paid, adding: "The company retained no benefit in any future development of the property and the directors have no knowledge of the success or otherwise of the redevelopment."
Sir Peter said the directors of Osborne & Little "cannot comment on the tax affairs of another company, whose tax residence, rather than country of incorporation, is not known to them".
I think this kind of investigative journalism is a useful way of keeping such people honest but Channel Four haven't really presented much in the way of raw meat here and end up looking a little desperate if that is all they have.
So a wallpaper company sells land it has to some development company and is expected to sniff around the tax affairs of the other company? Are they obligated to do this?
Is it normal to do this?
Has anyone who sold their home on this forum researhed the tax affairs of the buyer?
This seems the sort of mud slinging you expect from the C4.
Is it normal to do this?
Has anyone who sold their home on this forum researhed the tax affairs of the buyer?
This seems the sort of mud slinging you expect from the C4.
As Just Checking says. It's also fair to point out that the tax advisor they asked was actually a member of:
The Tax Justice Network (TJN) is an advocacy group consisting of a coalition of researchers and activists with a shared concern about tax avoidance, tax competition and tax havens.
They didn't disclose that. I'd say they were far more morally obliged to do so than the Osborne family who Channel Four said didn't do anything illegal.
Let's also not forget this happened in 2004 under Gormless Clown's watch and he did precisely nothing about tax avoidance which we all do.
However, the programme did make one fair point at the end. Osborne has waved his hands about an awful lot about rich tax avoiders and moral repugnance. He's the guy who has it within his power to actually do something about that. Talk is cheap.
The Tax Justice Network (TJN) is an advocacy group consisting of a coalition of researchers and activists with a shared concern about tax avoidance, tax competition and tax havens.
They didn't disclose that. I'd say they were far more morally obliged to do so than the Osborne family who Channel Four said didn't do anything illegal.
Let's also not forget this happened in 2004 under Gormless Clown's watch and he did precisely nothing about tax avoidance which we all do.
However, the programme did make one fair point at the end. Osborne has waved his hands about an awful lot about rich tax avoiders and moral repugnance. He's the guy who has it within his power to actually do something about that. Talk is cheap.
The Tory party have legal experts who should have looked into this....they obviously didn't or thought it wouldn't be noticed.
You don't seem to be addressing the points people are raising Leopard.
If osbourne's company had themselves funneled a pile of money through an offshore company in the Cayman Islands to save their own tax THAT would be a story, but of course AFAIK that's what the Guardian did 
Fair enough Leopard. I like a man who lies down when I tell them. 
Have you recovered from The Messiah getting a pasting at the election Facts?
Labour might be going to go one better and put Corbyn (backed by McCluskey) in and see if they can get completely wiped out in 2020?
Er....I haven't been away. As you very well know, as you've posted on a number of the same threads I have over the past days/weeks/months. So stop being an idiot, there's a good fellow.
Jul 7, 2015 -- 8:20PM, Eeternaloptimist wrote:
Fair enough Leopard. I like a man who lies down when I tell them.
Haven't got time for badinage......I know a good Psychotherapist though 
Psychotherapy be damned. Life's too short. Get your enjoyment where you can as long as someone or thing isn't hurt say I.
Don't be like that Facts. What is life coming to if you can't laugh at other peoples calamities?
Psychotherapist would be for you....let's get this straight 
Well that would be no good for obvious reasons. They'd be a jibbering wreck after ten minutes with me.
HH Sultan Vinegar 07 Jul 15 19:41
thought this was going to be about Ozzie and Sharon ...
Snap.
thought this was going to be about Ozzie and Sharon ...
Snap.
Of course the Osbornes benefited from the buyer's tax avoidance: by avoiding £2 million in corporation tax the buyer was able to pay up to £2 million more for the land.
As for defending the Osbornes on the grounds of ignorance, just how much investigative work does it take to discover that a buyer called Nightingale Mews Inc. British Virgin Islands is incorporated in the British Virgin Islands?
I know Gidiot's an idiot - he wouldn't have been christened with such a name otherwise - but even he must be aware of why people incorporate companies in the Caribbean dependencies.
As for defending the Osbornes on the grounds of ignorance, just how much investigative work does it take to discover that a buyer called Nightingale Mews Inc. British Virgin Islands is incorporated in the British Virgin Islands?
I know Gidiot's an idiot - he wouldn't have been christened with such a name otherwise - but even he must be aware of why people incorporate companies in the Caribbean dependencies.
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