Public Policy
John Chown and John Dewhurst have both been involved with public policy for many years and have both given long service to major tax committees.
After the collapse of Communism, John Chown did a series of projects in Russia and other CIS/CEE countries and enjoys advising emerging and transitional economies, at first on taxation policy on financial markets but now covering broader aspects of capital market developments. He works closely with Jackie Newbury (whose experience, before setting up her own consultancy, was in financial markets in London, Frankfurt and Tokyo) and an informal network of professionals and academics, assisted by interns and part-time graduate students.
For a discussion of our approach see
"Transitional and Emerging Countries" »
As independent professionals, we have no conflicts of interest, acting for the government as ‘beneficiary’, with no hidden agenda. We believe that free and active capital markets contribute substantially to the prosperity and general well-being of a country but are aware of conflicts of interest both at private sector and political level. Specifically, complex financial structures and instruments, having a vital role to play, can be used to develop tax loopholes and cause expensive losses to the government. We would recommend an environment in which markets operate freely while ensuring that participants and their clients pay an appropriate share of tax and comply with intelligently administered regulations to protect the public and ensure the integrity of markets.