SDC & Their Offshore Friends.

Shepwayvox’s public face has been a busy boy. (We wish we were so youthful)

He has written to the Council regarding certain matters and he has shared with us, via email, a response he has received from Cllr David Monk Leader of SDC.

Our Public face was asking about the new advisers/consultants to the Treasury Management Consultancy Contract. For Former Advisers Capita see Not A Lot of People Know That

On the 1/4/16 a new company was successful in tendering for the contract. The name of the company who now holds the Treasury Management Consultancy Contract is Arlingclose Ltd. The contract will run for 3 years.

From the link above you can see Arlingclose Ltd is 99.78%  owned by 2 Australian Trusts. They are the Clien Trust based in Queensland Australia and the Humphrey Trust based in Australia as well.

Now in the light of the Panama Papers and the fact The Independent (para 17) among others, has reported that the Prime Minister was forced to respond after it emerged that he sent a letter to the European Council president Herman van Rompuy in 2013 arguing for trusts to be treated differently from companies in anti-money laundering rules.

In the letter, Mr Cameron claimed that it was “clearly important we recognise the important differences between companies and trusts”.

“This means that the solution for addressing the potential misuse of companies, such as central public registries, may well not be appropriate generally,” the letter said.

Now we’ll leave you to decide what he was getting at.

Admittedly SDC signed the contract prior to the Panama Papers release, but we would ask what due diligence did SDC do on Arlingclose Ltd and would they make that information public or will they withhold this information from the public in light of the Panama Papers? Will SDC like the Prime Minister come clean?

In the current political climate it raises legitimate questions about why SDC have chosen 2 Australian Trust Funds,  to assist them in their Treasury Management, what benefit they are hoping to gain (a better return than £96,606.47 we hope), and whether they will continue to use such offshore companies in light of our disclosures and those of the Panama Papers.

SDC’s former advisers were Capita; (2011-16). In 2014/5 Capita advice helped SDC make ninety six thousand six hundred and six pounds and forty seven pence (£96,606.47).

There was hardly a day which went by where SDC were not investing; in the markets large sums of money (£7.9 million for example)overnight, for a few days or longer, with the following companies:

• Goldman Sachs
• Black Rock
• Ignis
• DB Advisors
• Federated Investors
• Svenska Handelsbank
• Barclays
• Legal & General
• RBS

SDC have a track record in getting into bed with companies offshore. You may or may not recall that NSL Services Group Ltd owned by Aac Capital Nebo Feeder Ii Lp ; the company responsible for placing parking tickets on cars across Shepway, are ultimately based in St Peter Port, Guernsey, an offshore jurisdiction. NSL Services Group Ltd receive approximately £35,000 a month from SDC for their services.

Is it right in the current climate, or ever, that SDC climb into bed with offshore companies when outsourcing services?

Is it right that taxpayers money eventually goes offshore?

There is nothing to suggest that any of those named above have sheltered, or seek to shelter, money or assets offshore to avoid tax or for any unlawful purpose.

Shepwayvox