A snail farm company that has been linked to tax avoidance is still operating in an apparently empty Swindon warehouse, months after it was potentially exposed by this newspaper.

According to the latest council documents, Snai1 Ltd is paying £342,500 in business rates at the old Kembrey Wiring building on Gerrard Way in Greenbridge Industrial Estate.

It is one of many snail-farming companies owned by Terence Ball which have been linked to tax avoidance - a practice which is not illegal but reduces the amount of tax the council receives.(Image: Newsquest)

One of Terence Ball’s companies was called a “sham” in a 2020 court ruling in Leeds, where Ball worked to minimise the tax paid by a property owner, Isle Investments Limited.

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Empty properties, like the one in Leeds or Kembrey Wiring in Swindon, are subject to expensive rates.

Owners of these properties bring in one of Ball’s companies as a tenant and pay Ball a fee in return for him finding a way to reduce their rates.(Image: Newsquest)

Many of Ball’s companies are snail farms. Buildings that are classed as for agricultural use, like a snail farm, can come with rate exemptions, reducing the amount of money the council receives.

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Therefore, having a snail farm as a tenant in their empty properties could cut the rates landlords are liable to pay.

Pictures published by the BBC of one building in Liverpool where a Ball company is tenant show boxes of snails laid out on the floor.(Image: Newsquest)

No such boxes are visible at Kembrey Wiring which appears empty with no signs of Snai1 or any other snail farming activity.

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The Leeds ruling said that the lease arranged between Ball’s company and Isle Investments were a “sham” and “pretence”.

This is because “the Units "were offices" and "a snail farm did not and could not have operated there".(Image: Newsquest)

Isle was ordered to pay a total of £38,879.98 in costs to Leeds City Council, and the council was supported in making liability orders to the property owner.

A liability order is a payment demand from the Magistrates' court if you do not pay back some debts, such as council tax arrears.

In August Swindon Borough Council obtained court orders against L’Escargotiere (A23) Ltd and L’Escargotiere (Farms A22) Ltd, both directed by Terence Ball, with one operating at Kembrey Wiring prior to Snai1 moving in.

Swindon Borough Council was contacted for an update but did not respond by the time of writing.

Attempts were made to contact Snai1 Ltd.

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