Andrey Lugvoy and Dmitri Kovtun Freezing Order 2020

John Glen Excerpts

Monday 10th February 2020 General Committees

[The Economic Secretary to the Treasury (John Glen)]

I beg to move,

That the Committee has considered the Andrey Lugovoy and Dmitri Kovtun Freezing Order 2020 (S.I. 2020, No. 36).

May I say what a pleasure it is to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Robertson?

The order was laid before the House on 17 January this year and came into force on 19 January. It has the effect of maintaining a freeze of any funds or assets that these two individuals hold in the UK or with any UK- incorporated entities, denying them access to the UK financial system and prohibiting UK persons from making funds available to them.

The order was made because in 2016 an independent inquiry, chaired by Sir Robert Owen, concluded that Mr Alexander Litvinenko was deliberately poisoned in 2006 by Lugovoy and Kovtun through the use of polonium-210. The inquiry also concluded that there was a “strong probability” that Mr Litvinenko, an ex-KGB and ex-FSB officer and critic of the Russian Government, was murdered on the order of the FSB, the Russian domestic security service. The inquiry further concluded that the killing was “probably approved” by the then head of the FSB, Nikolai Patrushev, and the Russian President, Vladimir Putin.

As part of its response to the gravity of those findings, in January 2016 the Treasury imposed an asset freeze on Lugovoy and Kovtun by making a freezing order under the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001. A second order was imposed in January 2018, which expired at the end of 18 January this year. This order, which I commend to the House, was therefore put in place to ensure that there was no gap in the freezing measures that have been enforced against Andrey Lugovoy and Dmitri Kovtun since 2016. Under section 8 of the Act, the duration of a freezing order is limited to two years.

Since 2018, as required by section 7 of the Act, the Treasury has kept the order under review. In May 2019, the Treasury reviewed the facts of the case against the relevant statutory criteria and concluded that the criteria continued to be met in respect of both individuals. Prior to the expiry of the 2018 order, the Treasury reviewed the facts of the case again and decided to make a new order to maintain the asset freeze against these two individuals.

The Treasury believes that making a new order is an appropriate and proportionate measure. The relevant conditions, as set out at section 4 of the Act, are still being met: the Treasury reasonably believes that action constituting a threat to the life or property of one or more nationals of the UK or residents of the UK has been or is likely to be taken by a person or persons resident in a country or territory outside the UK.

The freezing order is one of a limited number of measures available to the UK authorities to act directly against Lugovoy and Kovtun. We continue to believe that the freezing order acts as a deterrent and as a signal that the Government will not tolerate hostile acts on British soil and will take firm steps to defend our national security and the rule of law. The new order maintains a robust approach to Russia, and unity of approach with the US, which also sanctions these two individuals. Continued close co-ordination is a vital part of our joint effort in countering the Russian threat.

Were we not to maintain asset freezes against Lugovoy and Kovtun, we would risk sending a damaging signal that the consequences of murder in the UK are limited and time-bound if someone chooses to evade the UK justice system by remaining overseas. Not to maintain asset freezes against these individuals would likely be perceived as the UK softening its stance towards Russia. Furthermore, it would risk signalling to the Russian state that the UK is looking to normalise relations. That would be contrary to and directly undermining of Her Majesty’s Government’s consistent message that there can be no change in UK-Russia relations until Russia desists from attacks that undermine international treaties and security.

The current bilateral relationship is not the one that we want. We remain open to a different and co-operative relationship, but that depends on Russia stopping its destabilising activity, which threatens the UK and its allies. We engage with Russia on a guarded basis, defending UK national security where necessary, while ensuring that we address the global security issues of the day.

The Government believe that maintaining asset freezes against Lugovoy and Kovtun is an appropriate and proportionate measure, and that not doing so would run counter to the national interest. I hope that colleagues will join me in supporting the order, which I commend to the Committee.

--- Later in debate ---

[John Glen]

I am grateful to Members from across the Committee for their support for the new order. I will come to address the points made, but we should focus on the key point here. Absent any progress in bringing Lugovoy and Kovtun to justice, denying them access to the UK financial system, in combination with the European arrest warrants and the Interpol red notices that remain in place against them, continues to send a clear signal about how fundamentally we disapprove of the actions that they took, which led to Mr Litvinenko’s death.

The hon. Member for Bootle, perfectly reasonably and appropriately, made some points about the review of the codes of practice and ensuring that they are up to date with various pieces of legislation. He spoke about the need to bring and ensure continuing clarity and lack of ambiguity, and for the Government to be open and transparent in this area. Those codes are the responsibility of the Home Office, but I am sure they will have noted the points that he made.

The hon. Member for Glenrothes spoke about wider issues involving the Intelligence and Security Committee and its report into Russia. That Committee will be constituted in the very near future; it is not for the Government to tell the Committee when to publish its reports, but it would be good to get these matters into the public domain.

[Peter Grant]

I accept that the Government cannot tell the Committee when to publish the report, but they did tell the Committee when not to publish the report. Does the Minister understand that that causes considerable concern to a lot of people—and not only on the Opposition side of the House?

[John Glen]

I think the Government have made their position clear. It will be for the new Committee, once constituted, to determine the timings.

My hon. Friend the Member for Congleton made some points about the mechanics of how the asset freezing process works and the definition of those assets. It would probably be appropriate for me to write to her on that matter, because that is a technical process that I am not privy to this afternoon, and it would be difficult for me to give her satisfaction.

[Stephen Kinnock (Aberavon) (Lab)]

I fully agree with what is being proposed here with regard to Mr Lugovoy and Mr Kovtun, but the hon. Member for Glenrothes also raised the issue of unexplained wealth orders. That is an excellent piece of legislation, but to my knowledge only two unexplained wealth orders have been issued in the several years the legislation has existed. Can the Minister explain why so few have been issued?

My other point is about the Magnitsky amendment to the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018; it is a very important amendment, yet absolutely no action has been taken to draw up a list of individuals from Russia who should be sanctioned under the Magnitsky legislation.

[John Glen]

The hon. Gentleman will be well aware that those matters are broader than what we are discussing this afternoon. I certainly recognise the Government’s commitment to legislating in this area, and I know that the matter is under urgent consideration. I cannot offer any more comments on that at this point in time.

The prevalence of the use of unexplained wealth orders is an operational matter that I am not able to comment on. I am aware from previous conversations in the House, possibly with the hon. Gentleman, about the frustration that exists in this area, part of which is about establishing a precedent and a legal basis of confidence for moving forward with those matters, but I am not able to offer him more on that at this point.

[Alberto Costa (South Leicestershire) (Con)]

I have a specific technical point. I would appreciate it if the Minister gave it consideration and perhaps wrote to me afterwards. As a lawyer who has read the schedule referring to legal professional privilege, I think it right that legal professional privilege should remain protected—that is, the privilege under paragraph 4, referring to counsel, barristers or solicitors, or to the confidentiality of communications, as it is known in Scotland. However, there is a little bit of confusion in paragraph 5(2), which adds, cryptically:

“Information and documentation is privileged if the person asked to provide or produce it would be entitled to refuse to do so on grounds of legal professional privilege”.

There is ongoing debate in the courts, both in Scotland and in England and Wales, about who can claim legal professional privilege. I am thinking of those regulated under the Solicitors Regulation Authority and others under the Legal Services Act 2007. Could the Minister write to us to confirm that this only applies to authorised persons in England and Wales—namely solicitors and barristers, and to solicitors and advocates in Scotland?

[John Glen]

I am certainly very happy to look at that matter and write to my hon. Friend with clarification as soon as possible.

I have responded to the questions as best I can; I recognise that I have not given total satisfaction to everyone, but I hope that the reason and rationale for this order are clear. The Treasury continues to believe that the conditions set out in the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 for making this order remain satisfied, and I commend the order to the Committee.

Question put and agreed to.