Tina Green
Encyclopedia
Christina, Lady Green is a Monaco
-based, South Africa
n-born businesswoman.
Married to British retail businessman Sir Philip Green
, her second husband, Tina Green owns all the family shares in Jersey
-registered Taveta Investments. As a result, she has been referred to as the wealthiest and second wealthiest woman in the UK.
. Taveta's assets presently include :
As a result Taveta, and hence Tina Green, presently control 12% of the UK clothing retail market, making it/her the second-largest operator in the sector. The leader, Marks and Spencer, has been the target of three unsuccessful takeover bids from Taveta.
As a result, Sir Philip has become the target of activist group UK Uncut
, initially in November 2010 for his history of corporate tax avoidance. The group targeted Sir Philip specifically as a UK Government advisor.
Green, the Arcadia retail group tycoon, became the focus of anger over the programme of government cuts that campaigners said could be avoided if tax dodging was stamped out, bringing in some £25bn a year to the public purse and reducing the national debt. On 4 December 2010 campaigners staged a sit-in at Arcadia's flagship London Oxford Street
Topshop
store, and in Brighton
a few glued themselves to the branch windows. Other high streets in towns and cities across Britain saw similar protests in a day of action against the tax arrangements of rich individuals and big businesses.
As Taveta Investments is owned by Tina, protestors claim that the couple avoid paying £285 million in UK personal income tax, that would be payable if a UK resident owned the company. In November 2005, Sir Philip approved a dividend payout that benefitted his family via Taveta/Tina Green by £1.2bn, paid for by a loan taken out by Arcadia, cutting Arcadia's corporation tax as interest charges on the loan were offset against profits. The payout was the biggest annual dividend payout to an individual by a British company.
Monaco
Monaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a sovereign city state on the French Riviera. It is bordered on three sides by its neighbour, France, and its centre is about from Italy. Its area is with a population of 35,986 as of 2011 and is the most densely populated country in the...
-based, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n-born businesswoman.
Married to British retail businessman Sir Philip Green
Philip Green
Sir Philip Green is a British businessman. Green was born into a Jewish family in 1952, beginning as a businessman at the age of 15. The first and last quoted company Green took lead of was "Amber Day", from which he stepped down as CEO and Chairman in 1992...
, her second husband, Tina Green owns all the family shares in Jersey
Jersey
Jersey, officially the Bailiwick of Jersey is a British Crown Dependency off the coast of Normandy, France. As well as the island of Jersey itself, the bailiwick includes two groups of small islands that are no longer permanently inhabited, the Minquiers and Écréhous, and the Pierres de Lecq and...
-registered Taveta Investments. As a result, she has been referred to as the wealthiest and second wealthiest woman in the UK.
Taveta Investments
Via Jersey-registered Taveta Investments and its subsidiaries, Green owns 2,300 shops in the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. Taveta's assets presently include :
- 92% of Arcadia GroupArcadia GroupThe Arcadia Group Limited a British company that owns the high street clothing retailers Burton, Dorothy Perkins, Evans, Miss Selfridge, Topman, Topshop, Wallis and BHS, and the out of town chain Outfit, which sells lines from the other group chains...
, parent of Top ShopTop ShopTop Shop may mean:* TopShop A British Clothes Store* BOARD GAME Top Shop - A PlayStation Game* A Serbian national shop located in Novi Sad...
, BurtonBurton- Canada :* Burton, British Columbia* Burton, New Brunswick* Burton, Ontario* Burtons, Nova Scotia* Burton, Durham Region, Ontario* Burton, Parry Sound District, Ontario* Burton, Prince Edward Island* Lac-Burton, Quebec* Burton Lake, Saskatchewan- England :...
and Dorothy PerkinsDorothy PerkinsDorothy Perkins, whose trading name was inspired by a rambler rose of the same name, is a large British women's clothing retailer, active mostly in the United Kingdom.- History :...
. - BHSBHSBHS may refer to:* Baggage handling system, a type of conveyor system installed in airports* Barbershop Harmony Society, the first of several organizations to promote and preserve barbershop music as an art form* Beck Hopelessness Scale, a psychological test...
- Sears 'Shoe Express' chain.
- 53% owner of Owen Owen Holdings
- In September 1999, Green became a shareholder in the parent of Mark One
- A £23m-plus shareholding in Marks & SpencerMarks & SpencerMarks and Spencer plc is a British retailer headquartered in the City of Westminster, London, with over 700 stores in the United Kingdom and over 300 stores spread across more than 40 countries. It specialises in the selling of clothing and luxury food products...
during an attempt to purchase the company at the beginning of 2000.
As a result Taveta, and hence Tina Green, presently control 12% of the UK clothing retail market, making it/her the second-largest operator in the sector. The leader, Marks and Spencer, has been the target of three unsuccessful takeover bids from Taveta.
Criticism: Tax avoidance arrangement
Green's wealth stems from her relationship with her second husband, British retail busisessman Sir Philip Green. The arrangement between the married couple - with working-week London resident Sir Philip CEO or Chairman of all companies, while Tina remains sole shareholder via Jersey based Taveta Investments, but resident in Monaco - means that the couple minimise UK taxation liability.As a result, Sir Philip has become the target of activist group UK Uncut
UK Uncut
UK Uncut is a United Kingdom-based protest group established in October 2010 to protest against tax avoidance in the UK and to raise awareness about cuts to public services. Various sources have described the group as left-wing in its political orientation...
, initially in November 2010 for his history of corporate tax avoidance. The group targeted Sir Philip specifically as a UK Government advisor.
Green, the Arcadia retail group tycoon, became the focus of anger over the programme of government cuts that campaigners said could be avoided if tax dodging was stamped out, bringing in some £25bn a year to the public purse and reducing the national debt. On 4 December 2010 campaigners staged a sit-in at Arcadia's flagship London Oxford Street
Oxford Street
Oxford Street is a major thoroughfare in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, United Kingdom. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, as well as its most dense, and currently has approximately 300 shops. The street was formerly part of the London-Oxford road which began at Newgate,...
Topshop
Topshop
Topshop is a British clothes retailer with shops in over 20 countries and online operations in a number of its markets. Its sales come primarily from women's clothing and fashion accessories...
store, and in Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
a few glued themselves to the branch windows. Other high streets in towns and cities across Britain saw similar protests in a day of action against the tax arrangements of rich individuals and big businesses.
As Taveta Investments is owned by Tina, protestors claim that the couple avoid paying £285 million in UK personal income tax, that would be payable if a UK resident owned the company. In November 2005, Sir Philip approved a dividend payout that benefitted his family via Taveta/Tina Green by £1.2bn, paid for by a loan taken out by Arcadia, cutting Arcadia's corporation tax as interest charges on the loan were offset against profits. The payout was the biggest annual dividend payout to an individual by a British company.