5 ms·

Spain, not UK, is by far the most corrupt country in Europe. High rank spanish politicians are involved in the Panama Papers.

adventured 10y ago
I think a distinction between most corrupt and largest dollar sums involved in corruption, should be made. The UK is a very wealthy nation with very large, global banking interests. That inherently tilts things in terms of scale. If we're going by most corrupt, the UK is absolutely not at the top of that list, nor is Spain, in regards to Europe. I'll go with Transparency International's rankings of most corrupt in Europe, I find it far more plausible: Ukraine at #130 globally, Russia at #119 globally, Belarus at #107. Those last two are fascist dictatorships, the corruption is nearly absolute in terms of state power and abuse.
gonvaled 10y ago
Also british - Cameron's father (and probably Cameron, caught lying), non the less. EDIT Why the downvotes? Factually incorrect? Don't think so: http://www.theguardian.com/news/2016/apr/07/david-cameron-admits-he-profited-fathers-offshore-fund-panama-papers http://www.theguardian.com/news/2016/apr/07/david-cameron-ad... You don't like it. Fine, but don't downvote it.
- xioxox 10y ago
  He ran a fund which was based in tax haven to avoid double taxation. Lots of funds do things like this. It's not corruption or criminal.
  - gonvaled 10y ago
    Which applies in exactly the same manner to the mentioned Spanish politicians too.
  - spoonie 10y ago
    I listened to a MoneyBox radio programme about this. The "financial expert" said that it was effectively a tax-deferral program, just like a pension plan. Any gains inside the fund were tax free until the money was brought back into the UK. It may seem unfair at face value, but any UK citizen can defer taxes on up to 100% of their annual income in a registered pension plan[0]. So, IMO, the fairness would depend on what investors can do with the offshore fund that regular people can't do with their pension plans? 0 - https://www.gov.uk/tax-on-your-private-pension/pension-tax-relief https://www.gov.uk/tax-on-your-private-pension/pension-tax-r...
  - boznz 10y ago
    When you make the laws of what is criminal and directly or indirectly benefit from them then it is corruption.
- polshaw 10y ago
  It's factually incorrect that high ranking British politicians are named on the Panama papers. It's widely known Cameron's dad was in the PP but also that he was not a British politician. It still stinks but there's no evidence of David Cameron being directly involved.
  - gonvaled 10y ago
    > David Cameron has finally admitted he benefited from a Panama-based offshore trust set up by his late father. > Cameron also admitted he did not know whether the £300,000 he inherited from his father had benefited from tax haven status due to part of his estate being based in a unit trust in Jersey. Maybe he was not directly named in the papers, but he committed as much (or as little) corruption as the Spanish politicians.
mavdi 10y ago
Hah, Spanish are the rookiest of them all, that's why you think they are the most corrupt. They simply get caught too often. "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist" Also looking at you Switzerland.
- branchless 10y ago
  Exactly, to understand the UK you have to understand that you can't be handing brown envelopes stuff. That's so old hat. You change the laws and you have tacit agreements over several years for payback. That's how "gentlemen" do it. USA etc think they have it down. These boys have been running this sort of thing for a long time.
tim333 10y ago
The corruption perceptions index has Greece, Romania and Bulgaria as the winners.
cm2187 10y ago
The competition is fierce with Greece, Italy and France.

adventured 10y ago

I think a distinction between most corrupt and largest dollar sums involved in corruption, should be made. The UK is a very wealthy nation with very large, global banking interests. That inherently tilts things in terms of scale. If we're going by most corrupt, the UK is absolutely not at the top of that list, nor is Spain, in regards to Europe. I'll go with Transparency International's rankings of most corrupt in Europe, I find it far more plausible: Ukraine at #130 globally, Russia at #119 globally, Belarus at #107. Those last two are fascist dictatorships, the corruption is nearly absolute in terms of state power and abuse.

gonvaled 10y ago

Also british - Cameron's father (and probably Cameron, caught lying), non the less. EDIT Why the downvotes? Factually incorrect? Don't think so: http://www.theguardian.com/news/2016/apr/07/david-cameron-admits-he-profited-fathers-offshore-fund-panama-papers http://www.theguardian.com/news/2016/apr/07/david-cameron-ad... You don't like it. Fine, but don't downvote it.

xioxox 10y ago
He ran a fund which was based in tax haven to avoid double taxation. Lots of funds do things like this. It's not corruption or criminal.
- gonvaled 10y ago
  Which applies in exactly the same manner to the mentioned Spanish politicians too.
- spoonie 10y ago
  I listened to a MoneyBox radio programme about this. The "financial expert" said that it was effectively a tax-deferral program, just like a pension plan. Any gains inside the fund were tax free until the money was brought back into the UK. It may seem unfair at face value, but any UK citizen can defer taxes on up to 100% of their annual income in a registered pension plan[0]. So, IMO, the fairness would depend on what investors can do with the offshore fund that regular people can't do with their pension plans? 0 - https://www.gov.uk/tax-on-your-private-pension/pension-tax-relief https://www.gov.uk/tax-on-your-private-pension/pension-tax-r...
- boznz 10y ago
  When you make the laws of what is criminal and directly or indirectly benefit from them then it is corruption.
polshaw 10y ago
It's factually incorrect that high ranking British politicians are named on the Panama papers. It's widely known Cameron's dad was in the PP but also that he was not a British politician. It still stinks but there's no evidence of David Cameron being directly involved.
- gonvaled 10y ago
  > David Cameron has finally admitted he benefited from a Panama-based offshore trust set up by his late father. > Cameron also admitted he did not know whether the £300,000 he inherited from his father had benefited from tax haven status due to part of his estate being based in a unit trust in Jersey. Maybe he was not directly named in the papers, but he committed as much (or as little) corruption as the Spanish politicians.

mavdi 10y ago

Hah, Spanish are the rookiest of them all, that's why you think they are the most corrupt. They simply get caught too often. "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist" Also looking at you Switzerland.

branchless 10y ago
Exactly, to understand the UK you have to understand that you can't be handing brown envelopes stuff. That's so old hat. You change the laws and you have tacit agreements over several years for payback. That's how "gentlemen" do it. USA etc think they have it down. These boys have been running this sort of thing for a long time.

tim333 10y ago

The corruption perceptions index has Greece, Romania and Bulgaria as the winners.

cm2187 10y ago

The competition is fierce with Greece, Italy and France.