UK to expand Russia sanctions list as bill is fast-tracked
Liz Truss is expected to name hundreds of oligarchs, individuals and organisations to be added to the UK’s sanctions list on Tuesday, after a fast-tracked bill is passed that will make it easier for ministers to sanction those with Kremlin links.
Whitehall sources said the UK’s sanctions list would soon be on a par with the European Union after the legal reforms.
Officials are also understood to be exploring potential sanctions on Russia’s federation council members, equivalent to the US Senate. The EU sanctioned 146 members last week who voted to approve recognition of Luhansk and Donetsk in eastern Ukraine as independent states.
“Liz has moved heaven and Earth to get this legislation done. It transforms our ability to sanction Russia and go further and faster than before,” one government source said.
MPs and peers are expected to sit late into the the night to ensure the passage of the economic crime bill overnight, with ministers redrawing parts to close a number of loopholes that would allow oligarchs and kleptocrats to evade scrutiny under a new public register of beneficial interests.
After criticism in the House of Commons last week, ministers have proposed a series of amendments in the House of Lords to toughen up the bill, including a new proposal that wealthy owners who try to sell off property in order to avoid it being listed in the register will be forced to declare their details upon sale.
Peers hope to push the government to go further and reduce the time period given to owners to declare their interests from six months to three. Conservative MPs have signalled they could support the reduction if the amendment is returned to the Commons.
The bill targets those who hide wealth in the UK, particularly through
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