🔎 Last week in Westminster Hall, MPs set out how financial secrecy in Britain’s Overseas Territories is something that hits communities hard across the UK. When oligarchs, tax dodgers and organised criminals hide their money offshore, it is working people here at home who pick up the bill 👇🧵

🚨 Our Chair @philbrickellmp.bsky.social is leading a debate today on how financial secrecy in Britain's Overseas Territories is harming communities throughout the UK.

When oligarchs, tax dodgers and organised criminals hide their money offshore, working people here at home pick up the bill 👇

💷 Economic crime costs us billions every year, from fraud to money laundering.

But law enforcement budgets haven’t kept pace.

Watch Lord Cromwell make the case for an Economic Crime Fighting Fund, which would give agencies the tools they need by reinvesting more of the cash taken from criminals 👇

❗High-street money laundering and tax abuse is damaging communities nationwide. After our APPG received a briefing from the NCA last week, APPG Chair @philbrickellmp.bsky.social asked the Home Office what they’re doing about it ⬇

👏 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.

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

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🏝️ 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...

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📽️ 🧵 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.

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📽️ NEW VIDEO 📽️

🚨 "Missing deadlines must have consequences." 🚨

🏛️ After some Overseas Territories missed their own deadline for opening up their corporate registers, our Chair, @joepowell.bsky.social calls for "urgent action" from UK Govt to help us clean up dirty money.

🚨 📽️ 🗣️ Yesterday our chair @joepowell.bsky.social congratulated the Foreign Secretary on this week's post-Brexit deal with Gibraltar.

👍 The government of Gibraltar has created a beneficial ownership register - which boosts business confidence and "sends a message to other Overseas Territories".
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Brickell also called for a new Economic Crime Fighting Fund using reinvested fines and seized assets rather than increasing the tax burden.

Economic crime costs the UK £300bn each year, but comprises less than 1% of police resources. Enforcement funding does not match the scale of the issue.

In Monday's Crime and Policing Bill debate, APPG Member @philbrickellmp.bsky.social welcomed the introduction of court cost protections for law enforcement, which would level the playing field between agencies and wealthy crooks.

Read our Manifesto here 👇 www.economiccrimemanifesto2024.co.uk