Overseas Territories: Tax Transparency

James Murray Excerpts

Wednesday 5th February 2025 Westminster Hall

[The Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury (James Murray)]

Thank you for that reminder about the timing, Mr Turner. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Kensington and Bayswater (Joe Powell) on securing this debate, and Members on all sides of the House on their contributions, including the hon. Member for frozen asset—as she styled herself in her contribution—my hon. Friend the Member for Cities of London and Westminster (Rachel Blake).

I know Members have questions that they have raised about the implementation of specific tax transparency measures in the overseas territories, and our continuing collaboration with them. I will turn to those in a moment, but I will briefly set out the broader constitutional context of the overseas territories and their role in international tax.

We continue to support the overseas territories to build vibrant and sustainable economies, including through encouraging greater links to the UK economy. The overseas territories are an integral part of the British family. The inhabited overseas territories are self-governing jurisdictions with democratically elected Governments and responsibility for fiscal matters. They have responsibility for setting their own policies, including determining their own tax rates in line with international standards. They are also committed to upholding international tax standards, and the UK Government are actively working with them to ensure they meet their commitments.

Domestically, the UK has implemented a range of policies to prevent shifting of profits to low-tax jurisdictions, including controlled foreign corporation rules, anti-hybrid rules, and corporate interest restriction rules. All overseas territories with an international financial centre have joined the UK in becoming members of the OECD/G20 inclusive framework on base erosion and profit shifting. That signals their ongoing commitment to implementing the BEPS minimum standards.

All overseas territories with financial centres have also committed to the global forum’s exchange of information and request standard, and to implementing the OECD’s common reporting standard and cryptoasset reporting framework for the automatic exchange of information for tax purposes. Treasury officials regularly engage with counterparts in Crown dependencies and overseas territories to exchange best practice and technical expertise in adhering to international tax standards.

Where overseas territories need more in-depth support, HMRC works with them to build capacity and to comply with international standards. Support from HMRC has in recent years helped Montserrat and Turks and Caicos to be found fully compliant with the EU’s code of conduct group.

Of course, as other hon. Members have mentioned, the Government are also determined to close the tax gap in the UK public finances, and tackling offshore tax non-compliance is a key part of that. HMRC can access relevant information from overseas territories through the automatic exchange of information, and exchange on request, for tax investigations.

At the autumn Budget, the Government announced a record package to close the tax gap. That included our commitment to growing HMRC’s compliance workforce by 5,000 people over the next five years. As part of that, we are expanding HMRC’s international compliance work, supported by a campaign of targeted external recruitment of senior tax experts. Before the end of this financial year, HMRC expects to have recruited more than 50 experienced international tax professionals through that exercise, which will more than double the number achieved in the previous year. Tackling illicit finance in the UK and its overseas territories and Crown dependencies is a priority for the Government.

[Mr Mitchell]

Can the Minister provide an undertaking that if the overseas territories, and indeed the Crown dependencies, do not co-operate with what Parliament has set out—the Order in Council published in draft already—the Government will exercise their rights on behalf of Parliament and issue this Order in Council?

[James Murray]

I had a feeling the right hon. Gentleman was going to ask a question along those lines. I will answer it in a moment.

I welcome the commitment made by the leaders of the overseas territories in November 2024, which has been referred to by hon. Members, to support the Foreign Secretary’s campaign against illicit finance. As part of that commitment, boosting corporate transparency through registers of beneficial ownership is a core aim in helping to tackle money laundering and tax and sanctions evasion and in helping to foster an open and trusted business environment. Fully public registers of beneficial ownership are already in place in the UK, Gibraltar and Montserrat.

My hon. Friend the Member for Kensington and Bayswater asked about the register of overseas entities and whether trust-owned property would be included on those registers. If an entity from an overseas territory owns property in the UK, they would fall under the requirements and would need to declare their beneficial owners. That includes beneficial owners associated with a trust. The register of overseas entities is also being updated this year to grant, on application, access to trust information that is currently restricted from the public.

At the joint ministerial council in November 2024, the Government confirmed their expectation that fully public registers of beneficial ownership would be implemented by overseas territories. The Falkland Islands and St Helena committed to implement those by April 2025. Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Anguilla and the Turks and Caicos Islands committed to implement registers of beneficial ownership accessible to those with a legitimate interest by June 2025 at the latest. This approach offers the maximum possible degree of access and transparency while retaining the necessary safeguards to protect the right to privacy in line with respective constitutions.

Progress towards delivering on these commitments is under way. The UK Government have been clear to the elected leaders of the overseas territories that we expect registers to be delivered by the deadline and in line with the standard agreed at the joint ministerial council. UK Government officials continue to work in partnership with officials in the overseas territories to support the implementation of these registers, and last month they wrote with further clarifications on the minimum requirements for registers of beneficial ownership. The Government are continually reviewing this issue and will consider carefully what steps to take if registers are not delivered on time and to an acceptable standard. We are aware of the consultation document released by the British Virgin Islands and continue to engage with BVI to improve its proposal, in line with the agreement made at the joint ministerial council.

The UK, the Crown dependencies and the overseas territories stand united in condemning the Russian Government’s aggression. We have been working in lockstep to enforce UK sanctions, which hon. Members have mentioned, including by freezing assets across the Crown dependencies and overseas territories. That has helped to implement the UK Government’s sanctions regime, which, to date, has amounted to $9 billion-worth of assets. To support this, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation has provided significant technical assistance to build capacity in the Crown dependencies and overseas territories.

As we have heard in this debate, the push for tax transparency in the overseas territories generates strong views. I recognise that there have been instances in which high net worth individuals and multinational entities have sought to hide their assets and profits in the overseas territories. The overseas territories are working to implement international tax transparency standards and work closely with us to identify tax abuse, to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, and to enforce UK financial sanctions. We must continue to work towards greater tax transparency in the UK, the overseas territories and globally. That includes greater transparency regarding company ownership, as well as the ownership of assets such as cryptoassets and real estate, to ensure the public can see who the beneficial owners are. I thank you again, Mr Turner, I thank all hon. Members who have spoken in the debate and I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Kensington and Bayswater in particular for securing this debate.

War in Gaza

James Murray Excerpts

Tuesday 7th May 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

At the heart of the hon. Lady’s question is throwing the word “genocide” across the Chamber, which I do not think is helpful. If she heard what I said earlier, I was, I hope, specifically helpful to the House, in showing why what she said about the ICJ and genocide was totally inaccurate, by quoting the former president of the ICJ.

[James Murray (Ealing North) (Lab/Co-op)]

We need an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages and a massive surge of aid going to all parts of Gaza. As we have warned for months, an Israeli offensive in Rafah would be catastrophic and it must not go ahead. What are the UK Government doing to ensure there is maximum international pressure to stop the offensive from happening and to urgently secure an agreement that includes an immediate ceasefire?

[Mr Mitchell]

The hon. Gentleman makes the point that everyone wants to see a pause in the fighting, a sustainable ceasefire, aid getting in in very significant volumes and the hostages getting out. That is the policy of the British Government. We are doing everything we can, together with our allies, to achieve those aims and we will continue to do so.

Humanitarian Situation in Gaza

James Murray Excerpts

Wednesday 17th April 2024 Commons Chamber

[David Rutley]

We have talked about this a number of times in this urgent question in our responses. [Interruption.] And I am just about to answer that particular question; thanks for the encouragement. We have grave concerns about the humanitarian access, but that is not sufficient to undermine our judgment that Israel is committed to complying with IHL in general.

[James Murray (Ealing North) (Lab/Co-op)]

Last week, Samantha Power, the administrator of USAID, told Congress that northern Gaza is now experiencing famine and that almost no aid is entering northern Gaza. Does the Minister agree that the situation is intolerable and unacceptable? What exactly are the Government doing to make sure that it changes urgently?

[David Rutley]

The situation is incredibly challenging. As I have said already in answer to an earlier question, one of the commitments Israel has made is about access in the north. We continue to urge Israel to live up its commitments, so that aid can come in from the north, as well as there being more aid more generally, to help those on the ground in Gaza.

Israel and Gaza

James Murray Excerpts

Tuesday 26th March 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

The hon. Lady will not be surprised to hear me say that the British military forces always comply with international humanitarian law and are absolutely required to do so. I am sure she will note, like me, that when it comes to the issue of targeting and military operations, just as Britain uses extensive military lawyers and legal advice in making those decisions, so too do the Israeli Government.

[James Murray (Ealing North) (Lab/Co-op)]

We desperately need an immediate ceasefire, the immediate release of all hostages and full humanitarian access in Gaza, as the UN Security Council resolution now calls for. I recently met Medical Aid for Palestinians, which talked about the severe difficulties with rules on aid. More widely, we know that aid agencies have reported that the list of goods allowed into Gaza by the Israeli Government is difficult to access and can change without warning. Will the Minister put pressure on the Israeli Government to publish an official list and one that includes all the nutritional and medical aid that is needed?

[Mr Mitchell]

The British Government and the department within the Foreign Office that deals with humanitarian aid and planning look all the time at all those matters. The hon. Gentleman raises specifically the issue of medicines, and I hope he will be pleased to see that Britain deployed a field hospital on 15 March funded by UK aid under UK-Med. As I mentioned earlier, UK and local medics will be working there and will be treating—fairly shortly, I hope—100 patients a day.

Israel and Gaza

James Murray Excerpts

Tuesday 19th March 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

On all those matters, I have been clear to the House about where the Government stand and their direction of travel. The underlying points the hon. Lady makes are the reason why we are arguing with such force and passion for a humanitarian pause in which we could get resources into Gaza and get the hostages out, and such a pause could lead to a sustainable ceasefire. That is what the Government will continue to do.

[James Murray (Ealing North) (Lab/Co-op)]

We urgently need an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, a massive surge in aid, all hostages released, and a lasting peace with a two-state solution. I recently met with Medical Aid for Palestinians to discuss the desperate and unbearable humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Can the Minister explain the details of what the UK Government are doing to press for the necessary food and aid to get into Gaza and, critically, for it to be distributed there rapidly?

[Mr Mitchell]

The hon. Gentleman is right in his final point about the logistical difficulties. We are working with all the resources we can to make sure that the aid can be delivered and is not siphoned off, pilfered or attacked by people who are very short of food and desperate to get it. He sets out the importance of a humanitarian pause, hostages being released, and a new political vision of the future for Palestine. Those three things are very much at the heart of what the British Government are seeking to achieve.

Israel and Palestine

James Murray Excerpts

Monday 8th January 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

I recognise entirely what the hon. Lady says about the plight of innocent women and children caught up in these horrendous circumstances. That is why Britain is working with our allies to try to improve the level of humanitarian access, so that we can help the people who, as she so eloquently set out, are suffering at this time.

[James Murray (Ealing North) (Lab/Co-op)]

The suffering in Gaza over the last three months has been intolerable. I have spoken with many constituents about how unbearable it is to see, day after day, innocent civilians, particularly children, being killed. We urgently need to get to a sustainable ceasefire. Beyond that, a long-term peace will need a determined international effort to deliver a two-state solution, with Gaza as part of a future Palestinian state. What discussions have the UK Government had with international allies about the future of Gaza once the fighting has come to an end?

[Mr Mitchell]

The hon. Gentleman correctly sets out the challenge and the requirement for us all. The British Government, at the diplomatic and political levels, through ministerial engagement not just in Israel but throughout the middle east, are seeking to advance precisely the objectives that he so coherently put.

Gaza: Humanitarian Situation

James Murray Excerpts

Monday 4th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[Leo Docherty]

The Foreign Secretary has been hugely active, engaging with many different nations. He was in Israel just some 10 days ago, making the point that we must ensure that the humanitarian impact of this conflict is constrained and limited.

[James Murray (Ealing North) (Lab/Co-op)]

In Gaza, innocent Palestinians are facing an unimaginable nightmare—a humanitarian catastrophe, with thousands of civilians, including children, being killed. Further to his response to my hon. Friend the Member for Luton South (Rachel Hopkins), can the Minister provide more detail about what the UK Government are doing to urge Israel not to besiege or blockade Gaza, and to comply with international law and protect innocent lives?

[Leo Docherty]

We are pointing out that all sides must abide by international humanitarian law, and that ultimately there cannot be a military solution to political problems in the middle east. Clearly, we hope that the terrorist group Hamas will not have a political role representing the Palestinian people, but de-escalation and peace must come first.

Israel and Hamas: Humanitarian Pause

James Murray Excerpts

Monday 27th November 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

I will certainly be pleased to arrange for Foreign Office officials to meet the hon. Lady’s constituent’s family if she believes that there are lessons to be learned, but I also want to pay a special tribute to all the men and women who work in the emergency centre at the Foreign Office, who have often been working through the night throughout this emergency and have done so with huge diligence, tenacity and commitment.

[James Murray (Ealing North) (Lab/Co-op)]

As many other Members have made clear, a two-state solution is critical to a lasting peace. So, given the announcements made today, can the Minister make clear the UK’s complete opposition to illegal settlements in the west bank?

[Mr Mitchell]

The position of the British Government—and, I believe, the Opposition—is one of complete opposition to illegal settlements.

Sri Lanka

James Murray Excerpts

Wednesday 9th November 2022 Commons Chamber

[James Murray (Ealing North) (Lab/Co-op)]

I congratulate hon. and right hon. Members on securing this important debate, which gives me the opportunity to speak about the human rights and economic situation in Sri Lanka—a situation of great concern to a number of my constituents in Ealing North. Like many of my constituents, I have been deeply concerned by the ongoing violence and the suppression of peaceful protesters in Sri Lanka as the economic crisis on the island continues to unfold.

Just over the weekend, we saw peaceful protesters face violence at the hands of Sri Lankan police officers as they demonstrated against the detention of two student leaders. That is just one of the latest examples of the arbitrary detention of minority groups such as Tamils and Muslims, which has now expanded to include the Sinhala population, as state security forces have clamped down on the mass protests that have taken place in Colombo over recent months. I have also heard disturbing reports that the Sri Lankan army, which continues to maintain a military presence in the north-east of the country, has been disrupting the Tamil community as they prepare to commemorate victims of armed conflict.

Over the last week, Tamils in the north-east have begun preparations for Maaveerar Naal—Great Heroes’ Day—which falls on 27 November. I have been concerned to hear that the preparations have been disrupted by plain-clothes officers in what appears to be an attempt to intimidate Tamils organising any memorial activities.

As the current economic and political crises have gripped Sri Lanka, I have been contacted by many constituents with deep concerns about the conduct of the former Rajapaksa Government. I have written to the Minister for south Asia, Lord Ahmad, on multiple occasions and pressed him on what the UK Government are doing to support Sri Lanka with the economic situation and to help bring an end to the violence that has erupted. The current economic crisis has left close to half the population living below the poverty line, while a third face food insecurity. The people of Sri Lanka need the UK to do all it can to help bring an end to that.

Alongside help with the immediate economic and political situation, many of my constituents, particularly those from the Tamil community, have made clear the importance of their continued fight for accountability and justice for what happened during the Sri Lankan civil war. As we have heard from hon. Members, the UNHRC has passed resolutions on the matter and the UK has been the penholder. The most recent resolution, passed last month, renewed the mandate of the Office for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to report on Sri Lanka and to protect and preserve evidence of past human rights abuses to use in future accountability processes. However, Sri Lanka is not complying with the resolutions, so the UK must introduce targeted sanctions on individuals who are credibly accused of war crimes.

Earlier this year, I met a group of Tamil constituents to discuss General Shavendra Silva, a member of the Sri Lankan army who was sanctioned by the US Government due to allegations of human rights violations during the Sri Lankan civil war. Silva was the head of Sri Lanka’s notorious 58 Division: an army unit that committed grave violations of international law and oversaw a military offensive that killed tens of thousands of Tamils. I urge the Minister to commit the Government to sanctioning General Silva under the terms of the British Government’s global human rights sanctions regime.

The people of Sri Lanka face a desperate economic situation while peaceful protesters face violent suppression. That comes after so many years during which people in the country and beyond, particularly from the Tamil community, have been fighting for accountability for what happened during the civil war. As an MP representing so many constituents with strong ties to Sri Lanka, I repeat my calls for the Government to give whatever support they can to bring an end to the immediate economic crisis and violence and to support the ongoing fight for justice.

Afghanistan: FCDO Update

James Murray Excerpts

Monday 6th September 2021 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Dame Rosie Winterton)]

Order. If we have very short questions and short answers, we will possibly get through everybody.

[James Murray (Ealing North) (Lab/Co-op)]

As of this morning, I had received urgent, heartbreaking pleas from 289 constituents of mine about well over 1,500 of their loved ones desperate to get out of Afghanistan. My team and I have been doing everything we can to help, but we need the Government to respond and to be clear about what options people might have. Can the Secretary of State make it clear whether the response the Prime Minister promised today will include a specific response to the inquiries that I and other MPs have raised, and can he confirm when the eligibility for the Afghan citizens’ resettlement scheme will be published?

[Dominic Raab]

We will do everything we can to support the hon. Member, and indeed hon. Members across the House. The thing to understand is that there are three separate ways of being eligible to come to the UK. We want to triage the cases, and point people in the direction of the right port of call and give them the right advice for each one of those three channels, rather than mixing them together, given that they do not have the same eligibility criteria.