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Robinson bought 'key land' for £5 | Robinson bought 'key land' for £5 |
(20 minutes later) | |
Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson, and his wife Iris, bought a valuable piece of land from a property developer for just £5. | Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson, and his wife Iris, bought a valuable piece of land from a property developer for just £5. |
According to an investigation by the BBC's Newsline programme, the land deal enabled the Robinsons to sell part of their back garden for nearly £460,000. | According to an investigation by the BBC's Newsline programme, the land deal enabled the Robinsons to sell part of their back garden for nearly £460,000. |
They sold the land for £5 to a different developer, allowing the deal for their garden to go through. | They sold the land for £5 to a different developer, allowing the deal for their garden to go through. |
The couple could be liable for tens of thousand of pounds in taxes. | The couple could be liable for tens of thousand of pounds in taxes. |
The Robinsons acquired the strip of land 50 metres from the boundary of their back garden at Gransha Road in Belfast from a property developer friend, the late Fred Fraser. | |
The land was the gateway to a proposed housing scheme, covering the Robinsons' garden and others. | |
Mr Robinson approached Mr Fraser at the request of another developer who would later purchase part of their back garden for £459,000. | |
On the same day they sold the garden plot, Mr and Mrs Robinson sold that developer the access strip for the same £5 sum they had paid Mr Fraser 18 months earlier. | |
Value | |
A professional valuation carried out for the BBC put the strip's value at upwards of £75,000 when the Robinsons obtained it, and at least £220,000 when they sold it. | |
Although they made no profit, tax experts say Customs and Revenue could use market values on the sale instead of the £5 they bought it and sold it for. | |
This potentially exposes the Robinsons to a tax bill of thousands of pounds. | |
The BBC twice asked Mr Robinson if they declared or paid any taxes, but he has not responded. | |
Mr Robinson should also have declared the land on his Commons register, but did not, and has not explained why. | |
He also has refused to say why he did not declare a potential conflict of interest when the planning application for the scheme went before Castlereagh Borough Council for consideration. | |
BBC Newsline, 1830 BST, BBC1 Northern Ireland. | BBC Newsline, 1830 BST, BBC1 Northern Ireland. |