The Pandora Papers, the latest leak of offshore financial records, don’t seem to have a particular focus on Canada — at least based on what has been revealed so far.
But they nonetheless shed light on a global network of illicit financial flows of which “Canada is a hub,” says James Cohen, executive director of the Canadian chapter of Transparency International.
The nearly 12 million documents from 14 offshore services providers offer more detail on how the wealthy can shelter their money from the prying eyes of tax authorities and law enforcement.
The document dump, obtained by the Washington, D.C.-based International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, a network of reporters and media organizations, follows the Panama Papers and the Paradise Papers leaks.
2:09 Pandora Papers: White House says Biden administration committed to ‘additional transparency’
Pandora Papers: White House says Biden administration committed to ‘additional transparency’
Here are some key questions about how the wealthy hide their money and what the practice means for Canada:
Is it illegal for Canadians to set up offshore accounts?
No, it isn’t. It is perfectly legal for Canadians to have financial accounts and assets abroad.
“Canadians and others are allowed to put their money where they want,” says Michael Smart, an economics professor at the University of Toronto.
There are plenty of legitimate reasons for holding funds and assets outside of one’s country of residence, such as doing business and investing abroad or simply owning a vacation home abroad, for example.
But offshore financial systems can be a way to shelter wealth from tax and law enforcement authorities.
“It can be very difficult for the Canada Revenue Agency and the other national tax authorities … to know what’s going on there, know how much tax should be paid at home on the amounts that are flowing through those places,” Smart says.
At issue is both tax evasion and tax avoidance, says Andre Lareau, a law professor at Universite Laval. The first involves breaking the law. Tax avoidance is a murkier concept. It generally involved minimizing one’s tax burden in ways that are within the letter but not the spirit of the law, Lareau says.
In 1988, Canada added a “general anti-avoidance rule” to the Income Tax Act that has served as the reference point to draw the line between acceptable strategies to minimize tax and tax avoidance, which abuses the law, Lareau says.
0:35 ‘Pandora Papers’: UK’s Boris Johnson, Jordan’s King Abdullah comment on financial leak
‘Pandora Papers’: UK’s Boris Johnson, Jordan’s King Abdullah comment on financial leak
Where are these offshore accounts?
The term “offshore” originates from some of the small island countries that have become famous for being tax havens. Some of the financial services providers involved in the Pandora Papers leak, for example, operate in the British Virgin Islands and Cyprus.
But the latest leak makes it clear that offshore locations aren’t the only place where the wealth can set up opaque financial structures.
“One revelation already coming out of the Pandora Papers is that South Dakota is a very prominent jurisdiction for anonymous companies to be incorporated,” Cohen says.
And in 2016, the Panama Papers revealed Canada itself is a tax haven for some. The country’s pristine international reputation and lax anti-money laundering regime have made it an especially attractive destination for criminals looking for a place to park their funds, Cohen says.
How do the wealthy hide their money?
It takes money to hide your money. Circumventing taxes and investigators usually requires sophisticated legal and tax strategies.
“The root of the problem are tax advisors,” Lareau told Global News. While Canada has monetary penalties for tax pros who help clients perpetrate tax fraud, it should introduce jail sentences for added deterrence, he argues.
2:21 Panama Papers: Names of hundreds of Canadians released
Panama Papers: Names of hundreds of Canadians released – May 9, 2016
Who owns offshore accounts?
Whether or not the account is actually “offshore,” sheltering wealth usually involves setting up complex financial structures that make it difficult to figure out who ultimately owns what.
“You have Company 123 owned by Company ABC owned by Company QWR and then behind that, there’s finally Bob, who owns 25 per cent … or more of that company,” Cohen says, giving an extremely simplified example.
“Who is Bob? Where did Bob get that money from?” he asks.
While financial institutions have an obligation to address that question and verify who they’re really doing business with, it wasn’t until June of this year that Canada introduced similar requirements to others, including tax advisers and real estate agents.
But even with stricter rules in place, it can often be difficult for private-sector entities to assess who really owns what, Cohen says.
That’s why Canada needs a publicly searchable registry of beneficial ownership, he adds.
In 2019, British Columbia created a publicly searchable registry of information about beneficial ownership of land in the province. Quebec, meanwhile, now requires beneficial ownership to be reported in its existing corporate registry.
In its 2021 federal budget, the Liberal government announced $2.1 million to support the creation of a public corporate beneficial ownership registry by 2025. And during the federal election, the Conservatives, NDP and Greens also called for the creation of a similar database to help tackle tax dodging and money laundering.
And it’s crucial that any such registry be publicly available, Cohen says.
“We can say, ‘Let’s put more money into the RCMP and CRA,’” he says. “But at the end of the day, we look at the Pandora Papers and the Paradise Papers and the Panama Papers. These were journalists and civil society groups that are digging through the data to find out who is involved faster than even the authorities can work through that data.”
OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says wholesale sales, excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain, rose 0.4 per cent to $82.7 billion in July.
The increase came as sales in the miscellaneous subsector gained three per cent to reach $10.5 billion in July, helped by strength in the agriculture supplies industry group, which rose 9.2 per cent.
The food, beverage and tobacco subsector added 1.7 per cent to total $15 billion in July.
The personal and household goods subsector fell 2.5 per cent to $12.1 billion.
In volume terms, overall wholesale sales rose 0.5 per cent in July.
Statistics Canada started including oilseed and grain as well as the petroleum and petroleum products subsector as part of wholesale trade last year, but is excluding the data from monthly analysis until there is enough historical data.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa sustained a concussion for the third time in his NFL career, leaving his team’s game Thursday night against Buffalo after running into defensive back Damar Hamlin and hitting the back of his head against the turf.
Tagovailoa remained down for about two minutes before getting to his feet and walking to the sideline after the play in the third quarter. He made his way to the tunnel not long afterward, looking into the stands before smiling and departing toward the locker room.
The Dolphins needed almost no time before announcing it was a concussion. The team said he had two during the 2022 season, and Tagovailoa was diagnosed with another concussion when he was a college player at Alabama.
Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said Tagovailoa would get “proper procedural evaluation” and “appropriate care” on Friday.
“The furthest thing from my mind is, ‘What is the timeline?’ We just need to evaluate and just worry about my teammate, like the rest of the guys are,” McDaniel said. “We’ll get more information tomorrow and take it day by day from here.”
Some players saw Tagovailoa in the locker room after the game and said they were encouraged. Tagovailoa spoke with some players and then went home after the game, McDaniel said.
“I have a lot of love for Tua, built a great relationship with him,” said quarterback Skylar Thompson, who replaced Tagovailoa after the injury. “You care about the person more than the player and everybody in the organization would say the same thing. Just really praying for Tua and hopefully everything will come out all right.”
Tagovailoa signed a four-year, $212 million extension before this season — a deal that makes him one of the highest-paid players in the NFL — and was the NFL’s leading passer in Week 1 this season. Tagovailoa left with the Dolphins trailing 31-10, and that was the final score.
“If you know Tua outside of football, you can’t help but feel for him,” Bills quarterback Josh Allen said on Amazon following the game. “He’s a great football player but he’s an even greater human being. He’s one of the best humans on the planet. I’ve got a lot of love for him and I’m just praying for him and his family, hoping everything’s OK. But it’s tough, man. This game of football that we play, it’s got its highs and it’s got its lows — and this is one of the lows.”
Tagovailoa’s college years and first three NFL seasons were marred by injury, though he positioned himself for a big pay bump with an injury-free and productive 2023 as he led the Dolphins into the playoffs. He threw for 29 touchdowns and a league-best 4,624 yards last year.
When, or if, he can come back this season is anyone’s guess. Tagovailoa said in April 2023 that the concussions he had in the 2022 season left him contemplating his playing future. “I think I considered it for a time,” he said then, when asked if he considered stepping away from the game to protect himself.
McDaniel said it’s not his place to say if Tagovailoa should return to football. “He’ll be evaluated and we’ll have conversations and progress as appropriate,” McDaniel said.
Tagovailoa was hurt Thursday on a fourth-down keeper with about 4:30 left in the third. He went straight ahead into Hamlin and did not slide, leading with his right shoulder instead.
Hamlin was the player who suffered a cardiac arrest after making a tackle during a Monday night game in January 2023 at Cincinnati, causing the NFL to suspend a pivotal game that quickly lost significance in the aftermath of a scary scene that unfolded in front of a national television audience.
Tagovailoa wound up on his back, both his hands in the air and Bills players immediately pointed at him as if to suggest there was an injury. Dolphins center Aaron Brewer quickly did the same, waving to the sideline.
Tagovailoa appeared to be making a fist with his right hand as he lay on the ground. It was movement consistent with something that is referred to as the “fencing response,” which can be common after a traumatic brain injury.
Tagovailoa eventually got to his feet. McDaniel grabbed the side of his quarterback’s head and gave him a kiss on the cheek as Tagovailoa departed. Thompson came into the game to take Tagovailoa’s spot.
“I love Tua on and off the football field,” Bills edge Von Miller said. “I’m a huge fan of him. I can empathize and sympathize with him because I’ve been there. I wish him the best.”
Tagovailoa’s history with concussions — and how he has since worked to avoid them — is a huge part of the story of his career, and now comes to the forefront once again.
He had at least two concussions during the 2022 season. He was hurt in a Week 3 game against Buffalo and cleared concussion protocol, though he appeared disoriented on that play but returned to the game.
The NFL later changed its concussion protocol to mandate that if a player shows possible concussion symptoms — including a lack of balance or stability — he must sit out the rest of the game.
Less than a week later, in a Thursday night game at Cincinnati, Tagovailoa was concussed on a scary hit that briefly knocked him unconscious and led to him being taken off the field on a stretcher.
His second known concussion of that season came in a December game against Green Bay, and he didn’t play for the rest of the 2022 season. After that, Tagovailoa began studying ways where he may be able to fall more safely and protect himself against further injury — including studying jiu-jitsu.
“I’m not worried about anything that’s out of my hands,” McDaniel said. “I’m just worried about the human being.”
TORSBY, Sweden (AP) — David Beckham and former England coach Roy Hodgson were among the soccer dignitaries who attended the funeral of Sven-Goran Eriksson on Friday in the Swedish manager’s small hometown of Torsby.
Eriksson’s wooden coffin was covered in white flowers and surrounded by six tall candles and other floral wreaths as the ceremony began inside the 600-seat Fryksande church.
“It is a day of grief but also a day of thankfulness,” the priest, Ingela Älvskog, told those in attendance.
Beckham, who arrived by private jet on Thursday, greeted Eriksson’s 95-year-old father Sven and other family members with hugs inside the church before the funeral started.
Eriksson became England’s first foreign-born coach when he led the national team from 2001-06, and made Beckham his captain.
Eriksson, who also won trophies at club level in Italy, Portugal and Sweden, died on Aug. 26 at the age of 76, eight months after he revealed he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and had at most one year to live.
Some 200 seats in the neo-Gothic church from 1898 were reserved for his family, friends and players from his career in the football world, according to his agent. The remaining seats were open for the public, according to Eriksson’s wish, with a big screen set up outside the church where hundreds more gathered to watch the ceremony. The funeral was also broadcast live on some Swedish media websites.
The wooden coffin was wheeled in by pallbearers at the church Friday morning as fog wrapped Torsby — a town of about 4,000 people located about 310 kilometers (193 miles) west of Stockholm. Next to the casket was a photo of Eriksson on a small table. The floral wreaths included ones sent by FIFA and Lazio, the Italian team that Eriksson led to the Serie A title in 2000.
The ceremony began with somber piano and organ music, but later took on a more upbeat note with Swedish singer Charlotta Birgersson performing Elton John’s song “Candle In The Wind” and then “My Way” in a duet with Johan Birgersson, who later intoned the popular Italian song “Volare” after the family had gathered around the casket to lay flowers.
Beckham also visited Eriksson in Sweden in June to say goodbye. Others attending the funeral included the Swedish coach’s longtime partner Nancy Dell’Olio. Eriksson’s agent had said that guests from England, Italy and Spain were expected.
After the funeral, the casket was carried out of the church by eight men to the hearse. The guests then walked in a procession accompanying the coffin to a nearby museum where speeches and eulogies to the coach fondly known as “Svennis” were planned on an outdoor stage. A brass band played during the procession through Torsby, including the tune “You never walk alone” from the musical “Carousel” which has become the anthem of Liverpool, the club Eriksson supported since childhood.
The local soccer club Torsby IF, where Eriksson started his career in the 1960s, wrote on its webpage that “you also showed your greatness by always being yourself, the caring Svennis who talked to everyone and took the time, for big and small, asking how things were and how the football was going. We will miss you.”
