How to solve Britain’s dirty-money problem
If the government really wants to take on the oligarchs it should fund its corruption-fighters properly
OF THE BARRAGE of sanctions the West has inflicted on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, the most symbolically powerful, if not the most economically consequential, have been those targeting the cronies of Vladimir Putin. Britain’s government trumpets the fact that it has announced measures against more Putin-linked plutocrats than any other country. It is less keen to talk about why that might be. London has long been a destination for dirty money. Corrupt capital flows to Britain from all over the world, but no one doubts that Russian loot is a major contributor to a money-laundering problem that the National Crime Agency puts conservatively at £100bn ($125bn) a year.
This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline “Dismantling Londongrad”
Leaders May 7th 2022
- How to save the Supreme Court from itself
- Wearable technology promises to revolutionise health care
- The Fed causes gyrations in financial markets
- How the West should respond to China’s search for foreign outposts
- Press freedom is under attack. It needs defenders
- How to solve Britain’s dirty-money problem
More from Leaders
How to improve clinical trials
Involving more participants can lead to new medical insights
Houthi Inc: the pirates who weaponised globalisation
Their Red Sea protection racket is a disturbing glimpse into an anarchic world
Donald Trump will upend 80 years of American foreign policy
A superpower’s approach to the world is about to be turned on its head
Rising bond yields should spur governments to go for growth
The bond sell-off may partly reflect America’s productivity boom
Much of the damage from the LA fires could have been averted
The lesson of the tragedy is that better incentives will keep people safe
Health warnings about alcohol give only half the story
Enjoyment matters as well as risk