Asked by: Margaret Hodge (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Account Freezing Orders have been made on accounts (a) intended for use in criminal sanctions evasion and (b) believed to contain the proceeds of sanctions evasion since February 2022.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
Due to reasons of operational security, the National Crime Agency (NCA) cannot provide this information.
This Government has recovered more criminal assets than ever before. Between 2016/17 and 2021/22, just over £1.4bn was taken out of the hands of criminals using Proceeds of Crime Act powers.
Asked by: Margaret Hodge (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the number of Forfeiture Orders granted as a result of Account Freezing Orders made on accounts (a) intended for use in criminal sanctions evasion or (b) which contain the proceeds of sanctions evasion from February 2022 to date.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
Due to reasons of operational security, the National Crime Agency (NCA) cannot provide this information.
This Government has recovered more criminal assets than ever before. Between 2016/17 and 2021/22, just over £1.4bn was taken out of the hands of criminals using Proceeds of Crime Act powers.
Asked by: Margaret Hodge (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif, applied for an anonymity order in relation to an application for leave to remain.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Home Office does not comment on individual cases.
Asked by: Margaret Hodge (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Mr Nawaz Sharif, applied for leave to remain in the UK.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Home Office does not comment on individual cases.
Asked by: Margaret Hodge (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to publish the Government's Review into people who had entered the UK under the Tier 1 (Investor) immigration route between 30 June 2008 and 6 April 2015.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
We have published key findings from the review. The review gathered information on high-risk individuals, including from law enforcement partners.
To protect operational sensitivities in the law enforcement process, we will not make any further comment, at the request of agencies.
Asked by: Margaret Hodge (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the National Crime Agency's statement of 3 December 2022 which reported that it had secured100 disruptions against Putin-linked elites and their enablers, what estimate her Department has made of the proportion of those disruptions which were classified as (a) major, (b) moderate and (c) minor.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The National Crime Agency’s Combatting Kleptocracy Cell (CKC) has been tasked with investigating criminal sanctions evasion and high-end money laundering, including by individuals in the UK who are linked to the Russian regime.
Of the total CKC disruptions recorded, from the invasion of Ukraine to date, they are split approximately a third each between major, moderate and minor. For reasons of operational security we are not able to provide further details publicly.
Asked by: Margaret Hodge (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the National Crime Agency press release, entitled Wealthy Russian businessman arrested on suspicion of multiple offences, published on 3 December, how many of the 100 actions that demonstrably remove or reduce a criminal threat secured by the Agency against Putin-linked persons have resulted in money being (a) frozen under a UK sanctions regime, (b) frozen under the sanctions regime of another jurisdiction, (c) frozen under civil recovery provisions in the UK and (d) frozen under civil recovery provisions of another jurisdiction.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The National Crime Agency’s Combatting Kleptocracy Cell (CKC) has been tasked with investigating criminal sanctions evasion and high-end money laundering, including by individuals in the UK who are linked to the Russian regime.
Of the total CKC disruptions recorded, from the invasion of Ukraine to date, 42% have involved the freezing of funds. Of this, approximately 55% have resulted in money being frozen under a UK sanctions regime; 20% have resulted in money being frozen under the sanctions regime of another jurisdiction; 25% have resulted in money being frozen under civil recovery provisions in the UK; and none have resulted in money being frozen under civil recovery provisions of another jurisdiction.
Asked by: Margaret Hodge (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many account freezing orders have been granted against individuals associated with designated persons under sanctions relating to Russia since February 2022.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The National Crime Agency’s Combatting Kleptocracy Cell (CKC) has been tasked with investigating criminal sanctions evasion and high-end money laundering, including by individuals in the UK who are linked to the Russian regime.
12 Account Freezing Orders (AFOs) have been secured thus far covering a number of accounts.
The CKC’s work forms one part of a wider cross-government effort to tackle illicit finance and works closely with others including the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI).
Asked by: Margaret Hodge (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Suspicious Activity Reports linked to sanctioned individuals or entities are currently being closely monitored by the UK Financial Intelligence Unit, broken down by (a) country of origin of the designated person or entity and (b) sector.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The National Crime Agency is tasked with investigating criminal sanctions evasion and high-end money laundering, and the NCA’s UK Financial Intelligence Unit (UKFIU) has national responsibility for the receipt, analysis and dissemination of Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs), including SARs linked to sanctioned individuals and entities.
For reasons of operational security, we are not able to provide further details publicly.
Asked by: Margaret Hodge (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Suspicious Activity Reports were submitted by sectors not under money laundering regulation broken down by (a) country of origin of the person or entity concerned, and (b) whether they relate to (i) universities, (ii) schools, (iii) PR agents, (iv) charities and foundations, (v) business intelligence and (vi) other sectors in the last three financial years.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The SARs database does not easily identify the breakdown criteria requested. We are unable to provide that detail.