Governments signing bills worldwide to take people's assets

Economic Crime Bill: UK MPs back reforms aimed at seizing oligarchs’ assets

New laws designed to tackle “dirty money” hidden in the UK have cleared the House of Commons, amid calls for ministers to go further in seizing oligarchs’ assets.

The Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Bill received an unopposed third reading after it was rushed through the Commons on Monday.

Reforms contained in the Bill have been delayed for months and only moved up the government’s list of priorities after the Ukraine-Russia crisis.

They will undergo further scrutiny in the House of Lords, with Business Minister Paul Scully committing the government to making further amendments that deal with concerns over potential loopholes in the Bill.

These include dealing with what Conservative former leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith called a “back door” for those hoping to avoid reporting requirements under the new register of overseas entities.

The legislation is set to establish a new register of overseas entities requiring foreign owners of property in the UK to declare their true identity.

The register would need to be updated each year and punishments for failing to declare details, or submitting false information, would result in the asset being frozen and it cannot be sold or rented out.

The Bill states an offence is committed if a person acts “knowingly or recklessly” when submitting false information to the register, although Mr Smith and others warned this could set the threshold too high and not result in any court action.

Conservative former minister David Davis also tabled an amendment to enable the government to publish a “hit list” of people being considered for sanctions.

It also sought to deny the named people selling their assets or moving funds or assets out of the UK.

But this proposal was defeated by 300 votes to 234 despite the division list showing nine Conservative MPs rebelled to support it.

Speaking during committee stage of the Bill, Mr Scully told MPs that the government wanted to make sure the “drafting is right” for those backbench amendments that it has “sympathy” with.

“I am happy to work with colleagues who moved those amendments to make sure that we can get that right and see what more we can do in the Lords,” he said.

Pressed by Tory MP Mr Smith to confirm if the government would only seek to add measures from backbench amendments in the Lords rather than in the Commons, Mr Scully said: “Essentially, yes.”

MPs voted 306 to 225 to reject a Labour amendment that sought to compel the government to publish draft legislation on reforms to Companies House.

They also voted voted 303 to 229 to reject an amendment calling for a report on the funding of enforcement agencies linked with reforms to unexplained wealth orders.

Four Tory MPs rebelled to support this proposal, according to the division list.

Exipure is an incredible weight loss formula.
Click here ➳ ➵ ➸ ➼ ➽ https://bit.ly/3tEvhws