LONDON (Reuters) – British Prime Minister David Cameron published his tax records on Sunday in an attempt to draw a line under questions about his personal finances raised by the mention of his late father in the Panama Papers for setting up an offshore fund.

The revelations have led to demands for Cameron’s resignation and handed ammunition to opposition lawmakers who questioned why he was reluctant to detail his financial connections with his father.

Cameron took the unorthodox step of releasing the normally confidential details after saying he should have handled the scrutiny of his family’s tax affairs better.

The documents from RNS Chartered Accountants – which cover six years – show Cameron paid tax of 75,898 pounds ($107,198) on income of 200,307 pounds in the 2014-2015 financial year, the most recent one included.

His income comprised his 140,522 pound salary, taxable expenses of 9,834 pounds, 46,899 pounds from half of the share of rent from his family home in London and 3,052 pounds in interest on savings, according to the record.

Scores of politicians and business figures have been implicated in the Panama Papers, including the prime minister of Iceland who has since stepped down. The 11.5 million documents leaked from the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca detail the creation of more than 200,000 companies in offshore tax havens.

While Cameron is not accused of doing anything illegal, he made four different statements over four days about his late father’s inclusion in the documents.

He said on Thursday he once had a stake in his father’s offshore trust and had profited from it.

He said the unit investment trust was not set up to avoid tax but to invest in dollar-denominated shares and that he had paid all taxes due on his own investment, which was worth “something like 30,000 pounds” when he sold out in January 2010, before he became prime minister.

TAX TASKFORCE

Cameron’s admission of fault comes after a torrid period for his Conservative government. It is divided over a June 23 referendum on whether to remain in the European Union, has been forced to backtrack on welfare cuts and has been accused of not protecting Britain’s steel industry.

Seeking to further take back the initiative, Cameron also announced on Sunday a new taskforce, jointly led by Britain’s tax authority and National Crime Agency, to build on the work Britain has done to tackle money laundering and tax evasion.

When Britain hosted a G8 summit in 2013, Cameron put tackling tax avoidance at the heart of the agenda. Some of Britain’s former colonies increasingly rely on revenues from shell companies and trusts that often hide wealth.

“The UK has been at the forefront of international action to tackle the global scourge of aggressive tax avoidance and evasion, and international corruption more broadly,” Cameron said in a statement.

“There is clearly further to go and this taskforce will bring the best of British expertise to deal with any wrongdoing relating to the Panama Papers.”

The government said it had tracked down 2 billion pounds  ($2.82 billion) from offshore tax dodgers since 2010, and authorities were already investigating 700 current leads with links to Panama.

The taskforce will receive 10 million pounds of funding to start work, the government said.

 (Reporting by Paul Sandle; Editing by Alison Williams)

The post PM Cameron releases tax records after ‘Panama Papers’ storm appeared first on Ubiq TV | English News Channel.

JUNEAU, Alaska (Reuters) – Alaska’s famed sled-dog race is set to get underway on Saturday when dozens of mushers and dog teams from around the world begin their near 1,000-mile (1,600-km) journey through the U.S. state’s frigid wilderness.

The ceremonial start in Anchorage sets the stage for the official timed start on Sunday of a race that commemorates a 1925 rescue mission that carried diphtheria serum to Nome by sled-dog relay.

The trail cutting through Alaska’s tundra to the Bering Sea coastline is marked by darkness, steep climbs, temperatures expected to dip as low as 60 F below zero (-51 C), and fierce winds powerful enough to throw teams off the trails.

“Last year is done and gone,” said two-time defending champion and course record holder Dallas Seavey, 29, who is seeking to become the sixth racer to record four victories. Each of the last four races has been won by either Seavey or his father, Mitch.

“I would assume most of my competitors are coming back with better teams than they brought in the past. I know I am.”

Saturday’s events are known for drawing hordes of fans armed with cameras and banners who gather to cheer on the 85 mushers, a number of them from as far away as the United Kingdom and Sweden, as they ride through the streets of downtown Anchorage.

A lack of snow in the state’s largest city, however, forced race organizers to shorten the race’s ceremonial start to three miles (4.8 km) from 11 miles (17.7 km), despite efforts to bring in fresh snow by train from Fairbanks, Hooley said.

Mushers will hit 21 checkpoints with distances between stops ranging from 18 to 85 miles (29 to 137 km) before reaching the finish line in the coastal community of Nome, after traveling some 975 miles (1,569 km).

Winners usually cross the finish line between the eighth and 10th days. The winner will receive $50,400 and a new truck.

“I’m more nervous about the ceremonial start than the timed start,” said Miriam Osredkar, 38, one the 17 rookie mushers. She grew up in Ohio and has completed races in Idaho, Wyoming, Russia, and Alaska. “For me, the (timed) re-start, it’s just – get me out on the trail and let me be with my dogs.”

(Reporting by Steve Quinn in Jueanu, Alaska; Editing by Eric M. Johnson and Sandra Maler)

The post Alaska’s famed Iditarod race to start along shorter ceremonial route appeared first on Ubiq TV | English News Channel.

The post A Tibetan nun holds prayer beads during function organised by Tibetan Refugee Community in Nepal appeared first on Ubiq TV | English News Channel.

The post Ubiq TV wishes you a very Happy New Year appeared first on Ubiq TV | English News Channel.