British Prime Minister David Cameron has said that he believes British overseas territories and crown dependencies should not be labelled ‘tax havens’, after recent efforts to ensure transparency.
Speaking in the House of Commons his exact words were: "I do not think it is fair any longer to refer to any of the Overseas Territories or Crown Dependencies as tax havens. They have taken action to make sure that they have fair and open tax systems."
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The prime minister responded to a question by Labour MP Fiona O’Donnell about when "the 10 UK tax havens among the UK’s overseas territories and crown dependencies" will sign the multilateral convention on mutual and administrative assistance in tax matters.
Last June, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Gibraltar, Anguilla, Montserrat, the Turks and Caicos Islands, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man agreed to sign up to the Multilateral Convention on Mutual Assistance in Tax Matters, an initiative led by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
In a joint statement, the leaders of the territories and dependencies said: "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."
Isle of Man Treasury Minister, Eddie Teare said the recognition was welcome.
He added: " We do not consider ourselves to be a tax haven. The Prime Minister has now reinforced that message in very strong terms. It supports our view that the Isle of Man is a responsible business centre with a competitive, clear and simple tax regime."
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By GlobalDataCameron’s statement came less than a month after news reports that the French Government had added Jersey, Bermuda and the British Virgin Islands to its list of ‘uncooperative tax jurisdictions’.
