‘My heart is here in Britain – but staying under Labour will cost me £10m’
Mattie Brignal
6 min read
Bassim Haidar now splits his time between Greece and Dubai because of Britain’s ‘punitive’ tax regime
Britain has lost another multimillionaire. Bassim Haidar, 53, quit the country he “loves” to escape a hostile tax regime that he says has become worse under Labour.
The telecoms tycoon now splits his time between Greece and Dubai, taking advantage of tax benefits geared towards the footloose super-rich.
With dozens of high-profile uber-wealthy business owners like Mr Haidar threatening to leave – and take their vast wealth with them – just how worried should we be?
Britain has a proud history of attracting foreign wealth. Its convenient time zone, proximity to the Continent, cultural wealth and elite schools and universities have long piqued the interest of the jet-setting class.
This desirable mix persuaded Mr Haidar to move here a decade ago. “It was the quality of life, culture, schooling system for the kids,” he says. “And the tax situation – non-dom was a key decider.”
Until recently, Mr Haidar was one of 68,800 “non-doms” who live in Britain but avoid paying UK tax on money they make overseas.
He has five children aged between four months and 22 years old. The youngest three have moved to Greece with Mr Haidar and his wife. The eldest four were the beneficiaries of an “excellent” education in Britain and “felt settled here”, he says.
“In many ways Britain gave me peace of mind – emotional and financial security. The laws work. The tax system is complicated but clear. You felt there was good structure and it was safe for children. But this feeling is diminishing.”
The previous Tory government announced that it would phase out non-dom status. Rachel Reeves went a step further in the Budget last month when she announced that the “remittance basis” of taxation for non-doms will be abolished from April 2025 and replaced with a residence-based regime. Foreign earnings will also be brought into the inheritance tax system.
Mr Haidar moved abroad just before the Budget, which “justified” his decision to leave.
“The Budget was self-defeating,” he says. “You can’t simply tax people investing in infrastructure and call it growing an economy, that’s just not the way it works.
“From a non-dom perspective, the UK is no longer interesting as a country to stay in. It’s no longer competitive compared to Europe or the US.”
The issue goes deeper than fiscal policy, he says. “One of the biggest things I discovered when I moved here is the resentment of wealth.
“If you’re wealthy you’re not applauded for it, whereas in the United States and other places it’s highly encouraged.
“You need to measure quality of life versus future wealth protection, and if you were to choose, you’d rather go with the latter.”
The prospect of his global income being taxed and global assets being dragged into the inheritance tax net crystallised his decision to leave.
For a serial entrepreneur who credits hard work and self-sufficiency for his success, the prospect of losing wealth accumulated before he had even thought of moving to Britain was a red line.
Mr Haidar was born and grew up in Nigeria. His father was a wealthy businessman who lost his entire fortune when Mr Haidar was 12.
“It left a scar seeing him lose everything. That drove me to make sure that I achieve something and don’t end up in the same situation.”
Mr Haidar started out in the world of business from “absolute zero”, founding his first telecoms company aged 20, eventually building a fortune of close to a billion dollars. His business portfolio has expanded into sectors including fintech, energy and medicinal cannabis.
Until last year, he owned the superyacht on which Diana, Princess of Wales, holidayed with Dodi Fayed shortly before her death in 1997. He bought a 165ft replacement, that he christened Bash, for $10m. He has properties in the Caribbean, the US, Nigeria and Lebanon.
Mr Haidar argues – as do many of the super-rich – that cracking down on non-doms will lead to a “brain drain” as wealthy foreigners take their businesses and tax revenue abroad.
However, a study by the London School of Economics found that the amount of tax the richest pay varies considerably from one individual to the next.
Their tax bills depended primarily on the nature of the remuneration – whether income tax or the lower rate of capital gains tax was paid.
It found that most of the tax revenue paid by the super wealthy came from high-earning employees, who are hit with a 45pc top rate of income tax.
But one in ten people with a remuneration of over £1m a year paid just 11pc tax, roughly the same rate as someone on minimum wage. The average taxpayer receiving over £10m had an effective tax rate of just 21pc.
Mr Haidar would not say how much tax he pays in Britain. But he has calculated that by leaving the country he will save between £10m and £12m per year.
When put to him that an average taxpayer may not feel a lot of sympathy for a foreign national worth hundreds of millions who has made the most of Britain’s considerable advantages before moving on to sunnier climes, he says: “I don’t expect them to care until they’re in my situation. Perhaps they didn’t lose out [from me leaving].
“But I’m a good taxpayer and law-abiding citizen. I’ve paid taxes and am happy to pay more. Britain is losing that with me and thousands of others who have already left.”
He insists that he “loves” the country, and would “happily pay more tax” here, but the abolition of non-dom status is too punitive for him to stay.
“I developed an emotional connection to Britain. I leave with a very heavy heart. It’s a shame that we have to leave. It is home in many ways.”
When it comes to retaining foreign wealth, Britain may be in a better position than feared if it has managed to instil such a deep fondness in Mr Haidar after a 10-year honeymoon. Could the super-rich boomerang back to Britain?
“I’m very grateful and always will be to the country and the system,” Mr Haidar says. “And I look forward to coming back. I would leave that door open.”
