Queen Elizabeth tax leak

Around £10million of the Queen's private money has been invested in overseas accounts in the Cayman Islands and Bermuda, the 'Paradise Papers' have revealed. 

The Duchy Of Lancaster, which pays the Queen and handles her estates, has invested in retailers including BrightHouse, which has recently come under fire for exploitation of vulnerable customers.

The duchy says it was unaware of its £3,000 stake in BrightHouse, which it bought 12 years, ago, while large sums were also ploughed into off-licence chain Threshers, which has since gone bust.

The 13.4million Paradise Papers files expose the ways that the rich and powerful are protecting their wealth using a web of offshore accounts. 

Despite no tax advantages being gained by investing the Queen's money offshore, the news is likely to fuel arguments that greater controls need to be placed on royal spending. 

It recently had to pay back £14.8million in compensation to a quarter of 250,000 people.

The Queen is not believed to have any direct knowledge of the investments. 

This article was first published on dailymail.co.uk and is republished here with permission.