5th Report - Proceeds of crime
- HC No.
- HC 25
- Published
- 15 Jul 2016
- Items
- 0
- Government response
- Government response published 21 November 2016. Read the government's response ↗
Select committee: Home Affairs Committee
Proceeds of crime inquiry
Closed
Opened 14 Jan 2016
Closed 1 Dec 2016
Home Affairs Committee Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Inquiry scope (the committee's words)
The Home Affairs Committee says poor supervision and enforcement in the London property investment market are making a safe haven for laundering the proceeds of crime. It calls for much stronger supervision of agents, buyers and sellers. It also says that the key tool for detecting suspicious financial activity across the financial services sector and connected industries, such as real estate, is overloaded to the point of being "completely ineffective". Government Response Government Response to the report on proceeds of crime Government Response to the report on proceeds of crime (PDF 210 KB) The Home Affairs Committee looks into how effectively the measures introduced in the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, to deprive criminals of any benefit from their crimes, are working. In particular, the inquiry assesses the operation of confiscation orders, which are the main mechanism through which this policy is implemented.
Where it stands
The inquiry is closed, opened 14 January 2016.
The committee has published 1 report, most recently 5th Report - Proceeds of crime on 15 July 2016.
The government's response
Published 21 November 2016.
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government accepts some of the Committee's recommendations, such as early restraint of assets and involving users in designing the SARs replacement, but does not accept others, including confiscation courts and the NCA as lead agency.
- It agrees that assets should be frozen as early as possible "where it is operationally appropriate", but says early restraint "will not be appropriate in every case".
- On SARs, it has "committed to replacing the SARs IT system" and agrees users should be involved in design, but says the work "will take a number of years to complete".
- It does not believe specialist confiscation courts would help hearings be dealt with more efficiently, citing likely waiting times, cost and duplication of work.
- It commits to publish annual asset recovery statistics, starting in 2017, covering collection rates and what can "realistically be collected" from uncollected orders.
Reports
- 5th Report - Proceeds of crime15 July 2016
Evidence
- 3 oral evidence sessionsLatest 24 May 2016
Recent activity
- 5th Special Report - Proceeds of crime: Government response to the Committee's Fifth Report of Session 2016–1721 November 2016, Report published
- 5th Report - Proceeds of crime15 July 2016, Report published
- Oral evidence session24 May 2016, Oral evidence
Reports
Oral evidence sessions
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