Commons Report Stage Briefing - Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill

Britain is one of the largest financial centres in the world, but criminals and other corrupt actors have been abusing our systems for decades to hide their illicit finance, evade the law, and fund malign activity such as terrorism. In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the UK made welcome steps to implement emergency legislation that helps uncover and freeze dirty money (Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act), and to sanction individuals and institutions with links to the Kremlin.

This follow-up Bill is a crucial contribution to improving the UK’s armoury for tackling dirty money. However, there are important areas where the Bill needs to be strengthened if it is going to fully step up to the scale of the challenge. The UK Anti-Corruption Coalition’s Illicit Finance Working Group welcomes support for the following amendments.