Unionist Party scandal  revealed – Tax Haven firms cashing in on East Dunbartonshire PFI contract

The charge to Scottish taxpayers for PFI projects driven by  Labour and Lib Dem Party administrations in Westminster and Holyrood will add up to £30billion over the coming decades.

The East Dunbartonshire Schools PFI project is currently owned 50% by Innisfree Nominees Ltd, which is owned by Innisfree Group Ltd.

The main shareholders in this firm are Coutts and Co Trustees (Jersey) Ltd, based in the Jersey tax haven and part of the taxpayer-owned Royal Bank of Scotland group Coutts.

Coutts, whose chairman is Tory peer Lord Waldegrave, was named recently in the leaked Panama papers for asking offshore law firm Mosack Fonseca to set up almost 500 offshore companies for its clients.

Semperian PPP Holdings, which has a parent company also registered in Jersey, holds the other 50% stake in this project, which built six new schools in East Dunbartonshire including Bearsden Academy, Douglas Academy, and Bishopbriggs Academy.

Vast profits are being made by selling on stakes in PFI projects in Scotland. It is reported that one project alone made the seller several million pounds. All tax-free.

51 companies were recorded as being involved in 33 Scottish PFI projects in 2012 – including eight based in the Channel Islands.

The financial return to investors ranges from 10%-95%. All of it tax-free courtesy of the Scottish taxpayer.

Jo Swinson’s Lib Dem Party formed part of the government that implemented the disgraceful sell-off of Scotlands heritage.

Yet the electorate insists on returning a Lib Dem to Westminster. But there could be an explanation. Some may be happy campers enjoying the fruits of their investment.  Remember this:

“East Dunbartonshire has been awarded the accolade of one of the top twenty places in a UK “quality of life” survey.  The owner-occupancy rate is well above average and constituents enjoy good health and high educational results.”

The survey tracks where living standards are highest in Great Britain by ranking local performance across key indicators of the labour market, the housing market, the environment, education, and health.