Lakshmi Mittal

Lakshmi Nivas Mittal is the President and Chief Executive Officer of ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steel company and leader in all major global markets^[1]. ArcelorMittal is the result of a merger between Arcelor which was at the time the second largerst steel company in the world, and Mittal Steel, in June 2006^[2]. Mittal's two sister companies LNM Holdings and ISPAT International were merged in 2004 to form Mittal Steel^[3].

In May 2001 Mittal gave £125,000 to the Labour Party, shortly after which Tony Blair backed his bid for a Romanian firm sparking the 2002 Steelgate Row^[4]. In 2005 he gave £2 million to the Labour Party, one of the largest donations ever received^[5]. His personal fortune is estimated at £19.25 billion and he is ranked the richest man in Britain and the third richest in the world^[6]. He is known as a tough businessman who made his money from buying up run-down State-owned companies.

Tax Loophole

In an article in 2002 on the subject of how 'Rich people are costing Britain millions in lost tax by not registering their houses in their own names', the Guardian reports that Mittal's 2nd home of 17 years, Glenthorne (a 93 acre coastal mansion in north Devon), was not registered as being owned by him but in the name of the offshore company Exmoor Ltd.. Mittal is also reported to have 'non-domicile status', which is another loophole with the potential result that 'many wealthy people can live here virtually tax-free by claiming that their true home lies elsewhere'. The article claims that through the exploitation of legal loopholes 'wealthy individuals... appear to be enjoying the country's choicest property virtually tax-free'. The article also mentions Margaret Thatcher, Mohamed Al Fayed, Isaac Kaye, Tony Tabatznik, David Potter, Uri David, Rupert Allason, Wafic Said and Christopher Ondaatje as others who are not the registered owners of their homes and who benefit from such a loophole.

References

1. ^Arcellor Mittal 2007 Profile
2. ^Arcellor Mittal 2007 History
3. ^Arcellor Mittal 2007 History of Mittal Steel
4. ^BBC News, 13 July, 2005; Politics; Mittal gives Labour £2m donation
5. ^Ibid
6. ^BBC News, 13 June, 2007; Sport; Tycoon quiet over Birmingham bid
7. Evans, R & Hencke, D. (2002) 'Tax loopholes on homes benefit the rich and cost UK millions'. The Guardian 25th May 2002. Accessed 22nd May 2008