Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will bring forward proposals to require the beneficial ownership of companies and trusts to be made public.

The Government has led the way on the transparency of beneficial ownership information. The UK was the first G20 country to establish a public register of company beneficial ownership. Earlier this month, HM Revenue and Customs launched a beneficial ownership register for trusts with tax consequences.

Trusts and companies are fundamentally different, so these registers have different levels of access. Unlike companies, trusts are typically used for private reasons like managing assets for minors and vulnerable persons. Law enforcement should be able to identify who owns and benefits from trusts, but publishing these persons’ details would not be proportionate.