Labor accuses Turnbull of tax avoidance by reserving money in Cayman Islands

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull defended himself against Labor accusations regarding his alleged tax avoidance in the Cayman Islands.

Labor frontbencher Sam Dastyari took advantage of question time in parliament on Wednesday to ask Turnbull about his investments in companies located in the Cayman Islands, which is known for its zero corporate tax rates.

“There is one reason people invest in the Cayman Islands – so they don’t have to play by the same rules as the rest of us,” Dastyari said in a short Senate speech. He said that it was unfair and not right.

Turnbull claimed that he has paid all the taxes on his income and investments as approved by the Ministerial Code of Conduct. “In order to avoid conflicts of interest almost all of my financial investments are in overseas managed funds which means that I have no say in which companies they invest in,” he said in a statement, defending himself.

Dastyari also drove the focus of the parliament towards Turnbull’s investments in companies with headquarters at Ugland House, Grand Cayman Island. According to the U.S. government’s record, there are 18,857 companies that receive investments from high political authorities. U.S. President Barack Obama previously described the Ugland House as “the largest building in the world or the largest tax scam in the world.”

The Labor party member told the Senate that Turnbull made some changes in his Register of Member’s Interests in January 2015 and included investments in Zebedee Growth Fund, which requires investors from other nations to invest in it with a minimum of US$1 million. “And this isn’t the only investment the Prime Minister has in the Cayman Islands. There’s the Browery Opportunity Fund – minimum investment of US$1 million. And we also know of 3G Natural Resources Offshore Fund,” Dastyari added.

“Is any of it appropriate?” Dastyari asked parliament, even though the investments were legal and publicly known. He also said that if in future, the Liberal Party votes against tax transparency, it must remember Malcolm’s money is there in the Cayman Islands.

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