Asked by: Kelvin Hopkins (Independent - Luton North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department (a) international blacklists and (b) the Government of India's Undesirable Contact Men are included in the criteria for the granting of residence to (a) Sudhir Choudhrie, (b) Bhanu Choudhrie and (c) other people on those lists.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
The Home Office does not comment on individual cases. All persons wishing to enter or remain in the United Kingdom are checked against several watchlists and databases. Non-EEA nationals who do not meet the requirements of the Immigration Rules are refused leave to enter/remain.
Asked by: Kelvin Hopkins (Independent - Luton North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department uses the Government of India's list of Undesirable Contact Men as a criterion of decisions on who can reside in the UK.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
All persons wishing to enter or remain in the United Kingdom are checked against several watchlists and databases. Non-EEA nationals who do not meet the requirements of the Immigration Rules are refused leave to enter/remain.
Asked by: Kelvin Hopkins (Independent - Luton North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to improve conviction rates for (a) fraud, (b) money laundering and (c) other financial criminal activity.
Answered by Ben Wallace
The NCA estimates that there is a realistic possibility that the scale of money laundering impacting on the UK annually is at least in the tens of billions of pounds. The cost to businesses and the public sector from organised fraud is no less than £5.9 billion.
This Government has launched the new National Economic Crime Centre (NECC), which will deliver a step change in the UK's response to - and impact on - economic crime. For the first time, the NECC brings together enforcement and justice agencies (HM Revenue and Customs, the City of London Police, the National Crime Agency, the Serious Fraud Office and the Crown Prosecution Service), other government departments, regulatory bodies and the private sector with a shared objective of driving down economic crime in the UK. It will leverage a 'whole system' approach to enhance and coordinate our collective capabilities to target, pursue and dismantle the highest harm serious and organised criminals, including corrupt elites. Where appropriate this will include prosecutions.
This Government launched the new Serious and Organised Crime Strategy on 1 November and will invest at least £48m in 2019/20 in law enforcement capabilities to step up efforts to tackle illicit finance and enhance our overall response to serious and organised crime. These will include additional investment in the multi-agency NECC; increased frontline capacity and capability to tackle fraud; and an uplift in investigative and intelligence assessment capabilities at the National Crime Agency.
Asked by: Kelvin Hopkins (Independent - Luton North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate the Government has made of the level of money laundering and large-scale fraud made by way of financial transactions and offshore trust funds through the City of London.
Answered by Ben Wallace
The NCA estimates that there is a realistic possibility that the scale of money laundering impacting on the UK annually is at least in the tens of billions of pounds. The cost to businesses and the public sector from organised fraud is no less than £5.9 billion.
This Government has launched the new National Economic Crime Centre (NECC), which will deliver a step change in the UK's response to - and impact on - economic crime. For the first time, the NECC brings together enforcement and justice agencies (HM Revenue and Customs, the City of London Police, the National Crime Agency, the Serious Fraud Office and the Crown Prosecution Service), other government departments, regulatory bodies and the private sector with a shared objective of driving down economic crime in the UK. It will leverage a 'whole system' approach to enhance and coordinate our collective capabilities to target, pursue and dismantle the highest harm serious and organised criminals, including corrupt elites. Where appropriate this will include prosecutions.
This Government launched the new Serious and Organised Crime Strategy on 1 November and will invest at least £48m in 2019/20 in law enforcement capabilities to step up efforts to tackle illicit finance and enhance our overall response to serious and organised crime. These will include additional investment in the multi-agency NECC; increased frontline capacity and capability to tackle fraud; and an uplift in investigative and intelligence assessment capabilities at the National Crime Agency.
Asked by: Kelvin Hopkins (Independent - Luton North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the potential use of Unexplained Wealth Orders against Sudhir Choudhrie and related parties.
Answered by Ben Wallace
The Government does not comment on the potential use of Unexplained Wealth Orders against individuals. They are available for use in cases of serious crime including arms trafficking and related money laundering.
Where assets are suspected of representing the proceeds of crime, the NCA and others consider all cases for denial and recovery activity across the full range of criminal and civil approaches, including the new tools introduced in the Criminal Finances Act such as Unexplained Wealth Orders. The Home Office continues to work with law enforcement agencies to encourage their use.
Asked by: Kelvin Hopkins (Independent - Luton North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of Unexplained Wealth Orders in tackling the illicit arms trade and related financial flows in London.
Answered by Ben Wallace
The Government does not comment on the potential use of Unexplained Wealth Orders against individuals. They are available for use in cases of serious crime including arms trafficking and related money laundering.
Where assets are suspected of representing the proceeds of crime, the NCA and others consider all cases for denial and recovery activity across the full range of criminal and civil approaches, including the new tools introduced in the Criminal Finances Act such as Unexplained Wealth Orders. The Home Office continues to work with law enforcement agencies to encourage their use.
Asked by: Kelvin Hopkins (Independent - Luton North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has powers to require the SFO to investigate cases of international money laundering.
Answered by Ben Wallace
The Home Office does not comment on particular cases.
The SFO is independent, it investigates and prosecutes only the most serious or complex fraud, bribery and corruption cases and is superintended by the Attorney General. The decision to commence an investigation is that of the Director alone. Government cannot interfere with the operational independence of investigative or prosecutorial agencies.
Asked by: Kelvin Hopkins (Independent - Luton North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will instruct the Serious Fraud Office to investigate the activities of Mukhtar Ablyazov, in relation to international money laundering.
Answered by Ben Wallace
The Home Office does not comment on particular cases.
The SFO is independent, it investigates and prosecutes only the most serious or complex fraud, bribery and corruption cases and is superintended by the Attorney General. The decision to commence an investigation is that of the Director alone. Government cannot interfere with the operational independence of investigative or prosecutorial agencies.
Asked by: Kelvin Hopkins (Independent - Luton North)
Question to the Home Office:
What steps he is taking to improve mental health support for firefighters.
Answered by Nick Hurd
We recognise the vital role firefighters play and it is essential that fire and rescue authorities, as the employers, ensure that they receive the mental health support they require.
Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services is assessing how well services understand and meet the wellbeing needs of their workforce and where improvements could be made.
Asked by: Kelvin Hopkins (Independent - Luton North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the potential (a) amount in compensation payments by the Metropolitan Police to the victims of Special Branch officers who communicated with organisations and individuals that blacklisted construction workers, (b) number of recipients of such compensation and (c) amount of each individual payment; and what information her Department holds on the Metropolitan Police accounts from which similar compensation payments have been made.
Answered by Nick Hurd
The Home Office does not collect this information. Financial and budgetary management, including any compensation payments made, are a matter for individual police forces and Police and Crime Commissioners. In the case of the Metropolitan Police Service, this is the responsibility of the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime.