APPG on Anti-Corruption and Responsible Tax

👏 We welcome the referral to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal of this case of alleged misconduct connected to the OneCoin fraud.

❌ Legal threats should never be allowed to silence those brave people who expose wrongdoing.

⚖ We need a universal anti-SLAPP law in the UK as soon as possible.

🚨 STATEMENT 🚨

We welcome the Government's announcement today that it will set up an Ethics and Integrity Commission to help restore trust in politics.

Statement from our Chair @joepowell.bsky.social 👇

🤝 4/4 As an APPG, we look forward to working closely with the Government on this Bill in the months ahead.

bsky.app/profile/appg...

👏 3/4 Finally, @philbrickellmp.bsky.social welcomed the strategy.

❔ He asked several Qs, including on timelines and permissible donations.

👍 📝 Minister @rushanaraalibgs.bsky.social said she would write to him about his questions, and would be working closely with the Electoral Commission.

⚠️ 🪙 2/4 Next up was @liambyrnemp.bsky.social who cautioned that the measures outlined by Govt need to be strengthened by banning cryptocurrency from our politics.

📑 The Minister said existing rules will still need to be abided by, regardless of the type of donation.

🚨 📽️ 🧵 1/4 New video thread!

🗣️ Yesterday, when Govt launched its Elections Bill strategy, some of our members asked key questions.

🦹‍♂️ First up was @rachelblakemp.bsky.social who voiced her concerns about foreign influence.

📖 Minister @rushanaraalibgs.bsky.social agreed, citing the Russia Report.

2025 report: Clean Foundations for Growth — APPG on Anti-Corruption and Responsible Tax Some studies estimate it costs the UK a staggering £350 billion a year —the annual health and education budget combined. The UK government seeks to accelerate economic growth in an increasingly uncer...

↔️ Our recent report with the APPG on Fair Banking &
@ukanticorruptioncoalition.org calls on Govt to:

🚓 Fine and prosecute enablers more effectively
➰ Remove the trust loophole in property ownership
🪙 Review and reform tax reliefs

👀 Read more:

anticorruption-responsibletax.org/cleanfoundat...
4/4

💰 In short, Phil says, 'dirty money...corrodes the entire tax system.'

3/4

🏝️ As Phil says, corporate secrecy in territories like the BVI enables tax abuse on a huge scale.

🛥️ In Jan, @tbij.bsky.social reported on how UK tax havens allowed sanctioned Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich to allegedly dodge vast amounts of tax.

www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2025...

2/4

📽️ 🧵 New video thread!

🗣️ The APPG's @philbrickellmp.bsky.social spoke about British Overseas Territories in this week's tax debate.

❌ The British Virgin Islands (BVI) recently missed a 3rd deadline for creating more transparent corporate registers.

1/4

🚨 STATEMENT 🚨

This morning, @rushanaraalibgs.bsky.social, the Minister for Homelessness and Democracy, outlined the Government's new strategy to protect our democracy from malign influence.

www.gov.uk/government/p...

We welcome this move. Statement from our Chair Joe Powell here 👇

2025 report: Clean Foundations for Growth — APPG on Anti-Corruption and Responsible Tax Some studies estimate it costs the UK a staggering £350 billion a year —the annual health and education budget combined. The UK government seeks to accelerate economic growth in an increasingly uncer...

6/ 📖 Our report calls on the Govt to:

🚓 Fine and prosecute enablers more effectively
➰ Remove the trust loophole in property ownership
🪙 Review and reform tax reliefs
💷 Create an Economic Crime Fighting Fund

👀 Read our recommendations in full:

anticorruption-responsibletax.org/cleanfoundat...

5/ 💰 Our enforcement agencies can contribute large amounts to Govt coffers too; the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), for example, delivered a 317% return on investment between 2019–24.

✅ But enforcement in general needs more sustainable funding for it to be really ambitious.

4/ 🏚️ Property markets are being distorted too.

🫧 Anonymous ownership via trusts inflates asset prices and reduces transparency.

🫥 For example, in Kensington & Chelsea, 40% of foreign-owned homes are held through trusts:

warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/econ...

3/ 🏦 It’s not just revenue, it’s market distortion.

🪙 12% of UK GDP comes from finance, legal and accountancy.

❌ But non-compliant actors undercut clean firms, undermining fair competition and chilling innovation.

Roman Abramovich could owe UK £1bn in unpaid tax Scheme to avoid tax on offshore billions may have been botched because money was managed from the UK, BBC learns.

2/ 🏳️ Dodged tax 🟰 lost investment.

🏝️ One sanctioned oligarch funnelled £4.7bn through British Virgin Islands (BVI) companies to avoid over £500m in UK tax. If penalties apply, the final bill could reach £1bn.

🔗 www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

2025 report: Clean Foundations for Growth — APPG on Anti-Corruption and Responsible Tax Some studies estimate it costs the UK a staggering £350 billion a year —the annual health and education budget combined. The UK government seeks to accelerate economic growth in an increasingly uncer...

1/ ↔️ Our report with the APPG on Fair Banking & @ukanticorruptioncoalition.org finds the UK’s tax gap is nearly £40bn.

📉 Since 2018: prosecutions of enablers ⬇️ 75%

🤏 2023/24: fewer than 5 cases brought

❌ No fines for offshore enablers in 5 years.

anticorruption-responsibletax.org/cleanfoundat...

2025 report: Clean Foundations for Growth — APPG on Anti-Corruption and Responsible Tax Some studies estimate it costs the UK a staggering £350 billion a year —the annual health and education budget combined. The UK government seeks to accelerate economic growth in an increasingly uncer...

4/ 👍 Just some of our policy recs:

🗜️ Clamp down on enablers of tax abuse

🧼 Expand AML rules to cover all gatekeepers consistently

🔍 Open up corporate registers in Overseas Territories & Crown Dependencies, in line with intnl standards

Read more:

anticorruption-responsibletax.org/cleanfoundat...

3/ 👎 Weak enforcement damages investor confidence.

📉 The Committee on Standards in Public Life warns that political pressure to lower regulatory standards undermines trust and weakens institutional independence:
committees.parliament.uk/publications...

2/ 👍 The Government's own Growth Duty guidance is clear:

📈 “Well designed, proportionate regulation” is essential to protecting consumers and promoting long-term, sustainable growth.

2025 report: Clean Foundations for Growth — APPG on Anti-Corruption and Responsible Tax Some studies estimate it costs the UK a staggering £350 billion a year —the annual health and education budget combined. The UK government seeks to accelerate economic growth in an increasingly uncer...

1/ ❌ Our new report shows how excessive deregulation can risk flooding the UK with illicit wealth, distorting markets, and unleashing serious corporate misconduct.

anticorruption-responsibletax.org/cleanfoundat...

2025 report: Clean Foundations for Growth — APPG on Anti-Corruption and Responsible Tax Some studies estimate it costs the UK a staggering £350 billion a year —the annual health and education budget combined. The UK government seeks to accelerate economic growth in an increasingly uncer...

4/ Among its recommendations, our report calls on the Government to:

🔍 Strengthen oversight of AML enforcement

🔐 Close regulatory gaps exploited by enablers

👮 Modernise asset recovery and reinvest seized funds in frontline agencies.

Read more at: anticorruption-responsibletax.org/cleanfoundat...

3/ 👍 The UK’s own National Security Strategy and the Serious and Organised Crime Strategy both confirm that tackling economic crime is vital to defending the UK’s national and economic interests.

2/ 💰 Economic crime isn’t "just" a financial problem. It directly fuels:

❌ people trafficking
❌ drug networks
❌ ransomware
❌ and espionage.

🚓 In 2024, the NCA dismantled a laundering network tied to Russian elites, ransomware gangs, and the Kinahan cartel. Read the story here ⬇️

2025 report: Clean Foundations for Growth — APPG on Anti-Corruption and Responsible Tax Some studies estimate it costs the UK a staggering £350 billion a year —the annual health and education budget combined. The UK government seeks to accelerate economic growth in an increasingly uncer...

1/ 🚫 🌱 “There is no growth without security.” - PM Sir Keir Starmer.

Our new report shows how illicit finance undermines our national security. It funds violent crime, enables despots, and supports hostile states seeking to destabilise democracies.

anticorruption-responsibletax.org/cleanfoundat...

2025 report: Clean Foundations for Growth — APPG on Anti-Corruption and Responsible Tax Some studies estimate it costs the UK a staggering £350 billion a year —the annual health and education budget combined. The UK government seeks to accelerate economic growth in an increasingly uncer...

5/ 📖 You can find the report, with all of our policy recommendations in full, on our website:

anticorruption-responsibletax.org/cleanfoundat...

4/ 📃 The report outlines many policy recommendations that could achieve the 'double whammy' of tackling economic crime and stimulating growth:

🔍 Ending loopholes in company ownership transparency
👮 More effective AML enforcement
✅ Smarter regulation
⛔ Clamping down on 'enablers' of economic crime

3/ Most importantly, we outline how tackling fraud, tax evasion and money laundering isn’t a niche issue; it’s a growth strategy.

If we clean up our financial system, we could:

🗝️ Unlock public revenue
🧲 Attract investment
⚖️ Restore fairness to business

2/ "Clean Foundations for Growth" outlines some of the costs of economic crime:

💸 Estimated £350bn cost to the economy every year
📉 Public trust undermined
🏘️ Housing & markets distorted
🔒 National security threatened

1/🚨🧵 Out now! Our new report with the APPG on Fair Banking and @ukanticorruptioncoalition.org shows how tackling dirty money can create growth.

🗣️ The report launch featured speeches by @margarethodge.bsky.social, @yuanfenyang.bsky.social, UK Finance's Aminah Samad, and @kathrynwestmore.bsky.social