EU plans to combat tax evasion have been postponed until after the referendum partly to avoid harming David Cameron’s campaign to stay in
The plans, which may include stricter rules on publishing the beneficial owners of trusts, were expected from the European Commission this week but have been delayed until at least July.
Trust transparency was put on the EU agenda earlier this year with the leaking of the Panama Papers when Cameron was revealed to be the beneficiary of a Panama based investment trust. In the past Cameron has blocked EU attempts to identify trust owners citing privacy concerns.
Reviving the debate about trusts could lose remain votes if Cameron was portrayed as a wealthy elitist defending the opaque British trust structure.
The Commission is also concerned about the effect on the referendum result.
Trusts are widely used in the UK for inheritance tax planning but registers of trust ownership, required under EU law, are not easily accessible and are not tightly controlled.