{"id":1313,"date":"2026-09-07T13:29:37","date_gmt":"2026-09-07T12:29:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.gov.scot\/open-government-partnership\/?p=1313"},"modified":"2026-09-07T13:29:37","modified_gmt":"2026-09-07T12:29:37","slug":"case-study-private-purpose-trusts-in-scotland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.gov.scot\/open-government-partnership\/2026\/09\/07\/case-study-private-purpose-trusts-in-scotland\/","title":{"rendered":"Case study: Private Purpose Trusts in Scotland"},"content":{"rendered":"

An unexpected challenge from outside government turned a \u201cfinished\u201d piece of legislation on trusts into a collaborative effort to tackle corruption in Scotland. Open Government enabled risks in Scottish legislation to be spotted, challenged, and acted on.<\/p>\n

Read the full story and hear from the people involved below.<\/p>\n

What is a Private Purpose Trust?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

A private purpose trust is a type of trust set up to do a specific job, rather than to give money or assets to named people. For example, it might be created to look after a building or carry out a particular task. Unlike most trusts, it is mainly about achieving that purpose, not about benefiting specific individuals, although people might still benefit from it in some way.<\/p>\n

Spotting the problem<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The issue of Private Purpose Trusts (PPTs) emerged from an X post by Dan Neidle, Founder, Tax Policy Associates Ltd.<\/p>\n

\u201cPrivate purpose trusts have been widely used abroad for tax evasion, money laundering and sanctions-busting. They’ve never been permitted in the UK. But Scotland is about to introduce them. This seems a serious mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n

This was then picked up by Juliet Swann, Nations and Regions Programme Manager, Transparency International UK and Scotland\u2019s Open Government civil society committee Chair. However, raising the issue was a bit uncomfortable.<\/p>\n

As Juliet put it: \u201cYou want to assume a law is made for a reason, so asking \u2018are you sure?\u2019 can make you feel like a troublemaker.\u201d<\/p>\n

But this case shows that concerns don\u2019t always come up during formal processes. In this instance, the legislation had already passed through Parliament.<\/p>\n

Open Government in action<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Open Government networks provided a route to act quickly and collaboratively. Ministers were contacted, officials engaged across teams, and conversations expanded to include HMRC, UK Government colleagues, and serious fraud experts.<\/p>\n

As Jill Clark, Private Law Unit, Scottish Government reflected:<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were very much in listening mode.\u201d<\/p>\n

Working together<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Discussions between the Private Law Unit and Juliet focused on one shared goal.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t want to make Scotland a haven for corruption.\u201d (Juliet Swann)<\/p>\n

That shared intent helped build trust and enabled more open conversations.<\/p>\n

What began as a specific issue triggered much wider collaboration within government and beyond it:<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t feel isolated because we\u2019ve got Open Government colleagues as well.\u201d (Jill Clark)<\/p>\n

There was also a recognition of the value of external input:<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s been really helpful to get a different perspective on things.\u201d (Jill Clark)<\/p>\n

This reflects a core Open Government principle that better outcomes come from bringing in voices from outside government.<\/p>\n

Lasting impact<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Unfortunately, the nature of Private Purpose Trusts means transparency is challenging.<\/p>\n

The immediate decision was to leave the provisions on the statute book but not bring them into force. This is providing time to consider the wider risks and solutions.<\/p>\n

Crucially, the experience did not end there. It has fed into:<\/p>\n