'Illicit finance and the role of professional enablers in the United Kingdom: are things finally changing?' with Andrew Mitchell & Dame Margaret Hodge

25 May 2022

Portrait of Professor Ricardo Soares de Oliveira

with Professor Ricardo Soares de Oliveira
 Professor of the International Politics of Africa

Ricardo Soares de Oliveira is Professor of the International Politics of Africa at the Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford; Official Fellow of St Peter's College; and a Fellow with the Global Public Policy Institu...

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and resulting sanctions regime has shed light on the United Kingdom’s harbouring of illicit wealth from around the world.

It has also revealed the centrality of enablers in the legal and financial sectors in laundering oligarchs’ monies and reputations. As co-chairs of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Responsible Tax, Andrew Mitchell and Margaret Hodge have been at the forefront of the UK’s fight against dirty money, illicit finance and money laundering.

In this event, Andrew Mitchell and Margaret Hodge will discuss with Ricardo Soares de Oliveira and John Heathershaw past attempts at curbing professional facilitators, the inadequacy of present regulations and the prospect of improvement through the upcoming Economic Crime Bill, among other ongoing efforts. Most pressingly, they will be asking: after a decade of signalling reform intent, is change really about to happen?