I managed to get out my post about financial fraud finally, just before there was an Urgent Question in the House yesterday afternoon. MPs had heard a whisper that the intended Economic Crime Bill would be dropped from the Queen's Speech. It was noticeable that the Question had been raised by Conservative MP Kevin Hollinrake, and there was at least as much concern expressed by Conservatives yesterday as by opposition speakers. Indeed, it is difficult to find any Member who supported the government's official non-committal line. Minister Paul Scully had to fall back on the mantra that the government remains "committed to tackling economic crime". In response, Chris Bryant (Labour, Rhondda) reminded the House that at least seven years ago a Conservative prime minister had promised a public register of beneficial ownership (a key anti-money-laundering tool) but no Bill enabling it had yet appeared. Lib Dem Layla Moran drew attention to her own attempt to introduce such a Bill which had been thwarted.
Protests by minister Scully notwithstanding, there is strong evidence that the Johnson administration is inhibited in this area by its dependence on donations from oligarchs channelled through UK shells. Added to his reluctance to cooperate with the EU over the threat from Russia, this is all the more reason for Conservative MPs to vote Johnson out of the leadership of the party and of the country and to replace him with a cleaner pair of hands.
No comments:
Post a Comment