At the Open Government Partnership Summit in London, prime minister David Cameron announced it is to go ahead with plans which had previously been mooted at recent G20 and G8 meetings.
According to Baker Tilly’s George Bull, who points out that whether or not the list was published the tax authorities had already committed to using it, the decision to make the document public sets a benchmark against which other countries will be judged in the battle to combat tax evasion.
Bull adds that the government sees two main benefits of publishing the document. First, for UK businesses who will better able to identify the true owners of the companies they are trading with, and second, for developing countries.
However, Bull added: “Then of course there is the major benefit that public access removes suspicions of cosy deals and the authorities turning a blind eye to certain arrangements.
“This carries with it the attendant risk that some innocent companies may be wrongly criticised for apparent tax malpractice, but the Prime Minister clearly regards such collateral damage as a risk worth taking.
“By being first in the current debate to maintain and publish a register of the beneficial ownership of companies, the UK will not on its own succeed in achieving global change.”
