Key Facts

• New Clause 52 aims to amend Schedule 2 of the Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act 2022.
• It introduces a lower threshold of 5% for shares or voting rights held by family members.
• The current threshold for declaring ownership is set at 25%.
• New Clause 53 aims to amend the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018.
• The clause requires an Order in Council to come into effect no later than June 30, 2023.
• Mr. Kinnock acknowledges past efforts by Back Benchers to incorporate transparency requirements.
• Section 51 of the 2018 Act required beneficial ownership registries by the end of 2020.
• Overseas territories committed to introducing their own registers, with a deadline of December 2023.
• The FCDO is providing support through Open Ownership for establishing publicly accessible registers in overseas territories.
• Cayman Islands has completed a consultation on its register approach.
• BVI recently passed primary legislation for their register by the end of 2023.
• Anguilla received FCDO financing for a new public accessible register.
• New Clause 54 seeks to prevent land acquisition by companies in high-risk jurisdictions listed by the Financial Action Task Force.
• Jurisdictions on the taskforce’s list are updated three times a year and have committed to resolving deficiencies within agreed timeframes.
• The UK applies targeted sanctions to individuals from high-risk jurisdictions.
• New Clause 55 would amend the Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act 2022.
• Currently, companies must provide annual updates on changes in beneficial ownership.
• The new clause proposes reducing this period to six months.
• The new clause would amend the Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act 2022.
• Currently, trusts only need to declare the name of the trust on the register.
• The amendment seeks to disclose names of trustees, beneficiaries, settlers, granters or interested persons.
• Usmanov is an ex-Arsenal shareholder with assets worth over £100 million.
• He owns two properties in London and Surrey valued at £48 million and £34 million respectively.
• His close relatives now own properties in Italy, Latvia, Germany, and Spain.
• The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) must review its capacity to regulate cryptoasset businesses within six months after the Act comes into force.
• New clause 61 requires a review of the level of regulation of cryptoasset businesses in Crown Dependencies and UK Overseas Territories.
• A strategy for enhancing regulation will be published if serious deficiencies are identified.
• The new clause aims to offer a defense against actions based on the disclosure or publication of information relevant to investigating economic crime.
• It requires defendants to prove that their action was likely to be relevant and that they reasonably believed this relevance.
• The court must consider editorial judgement when determining reasonableness.
• The Foreign Policy Centre found that three-quarters of investigative journalists globally have received legal threats from this country.
• Jusan Technologies Ltd issued defamation proceedings against the Bureau of Investigative Journalism in August 2021.
• New clauses seek to protect disclosures related to the investigation of economic crime by equipping judges with the power to dismiss SLAPPs.
• The Minister acknowledges that the UK is leading on the issue at a national level.
• The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is reviewing firms suspected of SLAPP activity and issuing guidance to regulated professionals.
• New clause 64 focuses on anti-SLAPP provisions but extends further than what can be accommodated in the Bill.
• The Minister has not provided a hard date for comprehensive proposals despite previous consultations and analyses.
• The anti-SLAPP coalition will publish draft legislation at its second annual conference on Monday.
• The MP does not have sufficient numbers to press his new clauses to a vote in Committee but plans to reintroduce them later.
• New clause 66 aims to introduce a default supervisory authority for independent legal professionals not covered by any professional body listed in the Money Laundering Regulations.
• There are nine UK Professional Body Supervisors (PBSs) overseeing anti-money laundering activities across different jurisdictions.
• The Government's review identified concerns about unsupervised legal professionals in specific subsectors, such as specialist wills and estate planners.
• Clause 67 addresses civil asset recovery involving economic crime.
• Clause 68 deals with criminal asset confiscation following an unsuccessful prosecution.
• Four unexplained wealth orders introduced in 2018 have failed due to financial constraints faced by the National Crime Agency.
• The Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 is the focus of the discussion.
• Bill Browder and Judge Mark Wolf expressed shock at the ability for successful litigants to claim costs in Government action challenges.
• Serco faces claims and costs from the Serious Fraud Office.