Wales to deny Covid-19 support funding to businesses based in tax havens

Businesses whose headquarters are based in a recognised ‘tax haven’ will not be eligible for Covid-19 financial support from the Welsh Government, Ministers have announced.

Finance Minister Rebecca Evans and Minister for Economy, Transport and North Wales Ken Skates today announced that businesses owned by a company or individual living in a 100% tax haven will not be eligible for financial support from the Welsh Government’s Economic Resilience Fund.

The fund is providing additional financial support to companies in Wales during the coronavirus pandemic.

It’s aimed at helping address gaps not met by schemes already announced by the UK Government, Welsh Government and Development Bank of Wales.

The move to exclude firms headquartered in tax havens will impact a “small number of large organisations from accessing the Economic Resilience Fund.” The Welsh Government said.

Finance Minister Rebecca Evans said: “Despite our stretched and limited resources, we have put in place the most generous business support package in the whole of the UK. It is only right that businesses which are not contributing tax payments to our economy should not benefit from this scheme.”

Minister for Economy, Transport and North Wales Ken Skates added: “We are facing the biggest crisis of our lifetime and being able to address the economic and health implications of this crisis comes at a considerable financial cost.

In line with our something for something approach, I firmly believe that businesses who don’t pay tax should not benefit from the interventions we are making to try and protect our economy.

This decision is one of the important steps the Welsh Government is taking to build a better economy and better society for Wales.”