Transparency International UK’s report indicates that the UK
is the safest place corrupt individuals could store their illegally-acquired
properties and assets because it has an almost 1% detection probability going
through the country. The report, published during the United Nations’
International Anti-Corruption Day, included recommendations from the watchdog
to the United Kingdom.
The report indicated that a new law be introduced that would
allow UK authorities to seize suspicious assets obtained by a public official.
If the amount of the assets exceed the income of the public official, these
could be seized and held. The official will have to prove that their assets
were acquired legitimately to get them back.
According to UK’s previous financial watchdog the Financial
Services Authority, almost £23-45 billion pounds were laundered into the United
Kingdom on a yearly basis. According to TI-UK head Robert Barrington, the UK’s
detection rate for stolen and laundered money in the UK is very low and will
need great improvement.
The report also recommended that the UK should make use of
the private sector to help detect suspicious asset movements in and out the
United Kingdom to ensure sanctions be made to those who facilitate the movement
of such assets.
Another is to ensure that the recovery team is properly
resourced and should follow the example of Switzerland and Canada, whose
governments allow authorities to freeze public officials’ suspicious assets
when it is considered a ‘non-functioning judiciary’.
A full summary of the report could be found here.
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