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The Foreign Office will dispatch the UK’s anti-corruption champion, Margaret Hodge, to the British Virgin Islands (BVIs) to find out why the offshore haven is dragging its feet on proposals designed to fight financial crime.
Several of the UK’s semi-autonomous British overseas territories missed last month’s deadline to implement new registers of corporate ownership, a measure targeting the secrecy regimes campaigners say benefit criminals and kleptocrats.
But, while territories such as Anguilla and Bermuda are understood to be on the verge of complying, Foreign Office ministers are running out of patience with the BVIs’ slow progress.
Companies based on the islands have appeared in multiple international investigations into alleged wrongdoing, including the Paradise Papers and revelations about alleged tax evasion by the Russian oligarch and former Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich.
On Wednesday, the day after meeting leaders of the overseas territories, the Foreign Office minister Stephen Doughty said he would send the veteran anti-corruption campaigner Lady Hodge to the islands on a “fact-finding” mission.
“This government is committed to tackling illicit finance and working with our overseas territories is crucial to addressing this issue in the UK and overseas,” said Doughty.
“Some of our overseas territories are making progress towards transparent, accessible registers of company ownership, but we have made clear we need to see rapid, consistent progress across the board.
“As an immediate next step, I have asked Baroness Hodge to undertake a fact-finding visit to the British Virgin Islands and report back to me. I will consider further steps carefully in light of the findings.”
Hodge, 80, was named the UK’s anti-corruption champion in December last year in recognition of her record in combating illicit finance and advocating for transparency in Britain’s offshore financial havens in particular. Hodge, who has held six ministerial posts, was the Labour MP for Barking in east London from 1994 until she stood down before the general election last year.
David Lammy, the foreign secretary, has vowed to lift the veil of corporate secrecy that allows people to disguise their business dealings in jurisdictions such as the BVIs.
Successive governments have been pushing overseas territories, and a separate group of crown dependencies, such as Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man, to introduce fully publicly accessible registers of beneficial ownership (Parbos).
At a meeting in London last November, five overseas territories, including the BVIs, promised to introduce legitimate interest access registers of beneficial interests (Liarbos) as a prelude to further steps.
A spokesperson for the BVIs’ government said: “We continue to collaborate closely with international partners, including the UK government, working together to uphold high standards and protect our financial system.
“This week’s productive talks in London between premier Natalio Wheatley and minister Stephen Doughty reflect our shared commitment to strengthening governance and democracy in the Virgin Islands. We look forward to building on this cooperation in a spirit of mutual respect.”
The Guardian has approached Hodge for comment.
