Summit on Illicit Finance

Rebecca Long Bailey Excerpts

Tuesday 9th June 2026 Westminster Hall

[Rebecca Long Bailey (Salford) (Lab)]

It is, as always, a pleasure, Sir Roger. I thank the hon. Member for North Norfolk (Steff Aquarone) for bringing this important debate to Westminster Hall and for his excellent speech. I agreed with all the speeches made by colleagues today, and I do not get to say that very often. We have had some fantastic contributions.

For too long, the UK has been seen not only as a victim of illicit finance, but a destination for it. Dirty money has flowed through property markets, financial institutions and networks of shell companies. We have seen widespread tax avoidance while ordinary working people continue to do the right thing and pay their taxes every month. People look at that imbalance and ask an important question: why is it that those who play by the rules are expected to shoulder the burden while others are able to hide wealth behind secrecy and weak enforcement? Every pound lost is a pound that cannot be invested in our NHS, schools, social care system and local communities. It is money that cannot be used to recruit nurses, support teachers, improve public transport or rebuild the local services that people rely on every day.

Illicit finance does not simply deprive us of important public revenue; it actively reshapes our economy in very damaging ways. Nowhere is that more visible than in the housing market. Vast quantities of suspect wealth have flowed into UK property. We have already heard about million-pound mansions in Kensington, but it extends as far as entire new apartment blocks being bought by foreign investors in shell companies, with no notion of who they are and why they are investing here in the UK. It is a vehicle within which wealth can be stored and concealed rather than places for people to live. The result is higher prices, reduced affordability and a market that too often rewards speculation over social need.

That is why transparency—an important word that has come up today—must be at the heart of our response as a Government and this upcoming summit. No individual should be able to own property in the United Kingdom without their ultimate beneficial ownership being disclosed, verified and recorded on a public register. If ownership cannot be established transparently, that asset should not be capable of being bought, sold or transferred within the UK market.

I agree with colleagues’ comments on the overseas territories and Crown dependencies. I do not want to reiterate their arguments, but our Government must establish a fully public and independently verified register of beneficial ownership covering all UK land and property, including assets held through trusts and nominee arrangements.

Companies House must be transformed from a passive registrar into an active gatekeeper with the powers and resources necessary to verify company directors, beneficial owners and corporate filings before companies can operate within our economy. The Land Registry, Companies House and the National Crime Agency should be given stronger powers to investigate opaque ownership structures and pursue wrongdoing wherever it occurs.

We know, however, that rules are not enough; enforcement matters too. Agencies tasked with tackling economic crime remain significantly outmatched by and under-resourced for the scale of the challenge they face. Long-term investment is desperately needed in specialist law enforcement and regulatory bodies. Such investment could be funded in part, perhaps, through stronger economic crime levies on major financial institutions, asset recovery and financial penalties. We should also expand the use of unexplained wealth orders and remove the legal cost barriers that have too often discouraged their use.

We must also confront those who enable financial wrongdoing. The vast majority of lawyers—I was one—accountants and financial professionals act responsibly but, if individuals facilitate illicit activity, there must be meaningful consequences. Equally, we need stronger legislation against SLAPP—strategic lawsuits against public participation—to protect journalists, researchers and campaigners who, in the public interest, expose corruption and financial misconduct. Illicit finance does not respect national borders, so the UK must lead international efforts to improve transparency, tackle offshore secrecy and strengthen co-operation between Governments, regulators and law enforcement agencies.

This issue is ultimately about the kind of country that we want to be. Do we accept an economy where secrecy, wealth and influence can buy special treatment, or do we believe that everyone should contribute fairly to the society from which they benefit? I know that everybody in this room sees society in the same way that I do, because most people understand that very simple principle. When everyone pays their fair share, we can properly fund the public services that bind us together and invest in the future of our communities.

Cuba: Humanitarian Situation

Rebecca Long Bailey Excerpts

Monday 8th June 2026 Commons Chamber

[Chris Elmore]

On diplomatic efforts, I have said repeatedly—I am happy to reiterate it—that that work is ongoing. I have listed a number of meetings that have happened at the most senior level. In terms of the hon. Gentleman’s points on force, our dialogue is about peaceful resolutions through political dialogue, not through increasing any conditions. On the wider point around what is happening in Cuba, as I said in my opening response to the right hon. Member for Islington North, we have opposed the embargo for the past 30 years. I cannot predict the future, but that has been the position of Administrations from 1996 until today.

[Rebecca Long Bailey (Salford) (Lab)]

US secondary sanctions on Cuba arguably represent a clear breach of international law. What representations have the UK Government made to the US about that, in the same way they did with regard to Greenland?

[Chris Elmore]

We continue to have the dialogue I have mentioned in previous answers, and we continue to be of the very strong view that diplomatic courses of action are the best way forward. We also continue to respect the UN charter and the wider multilateral system, including the international rule of law. We would expect, as a member of the UN Security Council and the General Assembly, all countries to follow that position.

Kashmir: Self-determination

Rebecca Long Bailey Excerpts

Wednesday 10th December 2025 Westminster Hall

[Imran Hussain]

I thank my hon. Friend for that timely intervention. He is right, and I will come on to the substance of the point he makes shortly.

Kashmir remains one of the world’s most heavily militarised zones and longest unresolved international disputes. Today’s problems have their origins in the unfinished business of partition in 1947, and it is important to start there—a moment in history when Britain played a direct and undeniable role. In 1948, the United Nations Security Council adopted resolution 47, which mandated a free and fair referendum to allow the sons and daughters of Kashmir to determine their own future and their own destiny.

[Rebecca Long Bailey (Salford) (Lab)]

My hon. Friend speaks with great moral clarity. Does he agree that, given that the matter has been decided by the UN, lasting peace in the region cannot be achieved without dialogue that includes the voices and aspirations of the people of Kashmir themselves?

Gaza and Sudan

Rebecca Long Bailey Excerpts

Tuesday 18th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Yvette Cooper]

It is because of the US-led plan, which is widely supported, including by countries such as Qatar, Türkiye and Egypt in the mediation talks, that we have a ceasefire in Gaza after two years of the most horrendous suffering. President Trump’s leadership and the US’s determination to take the plan forward are immensely important. The UN resolution passed last night had the support of and has been welcomed by the Palestinian Authority and neighbouring Arab and Muslim states. It is important to maintain that unity; we will not get progress if we do not. Ultimately, it is important that we can deliver the two-state solution that this Government are committed to, but we need everyone to work together to deliver that.

[Rebecca Long Bailey (Salford) (Lab)]

My constituent was separated from her five-year-old son during the horrors of displacement in Sudan. By a sheer miracle, he made it to Saudi Arabia; he is now staying there temporarily until 1 December, after which time he will be forced to return to Sudan. What can the Foreign Secretary do to support families such as that by way of evacuation pathways or humanitarian schemes?

[Yvette Cooper]

I will happily look into the particular case of the constituent that my hon. Friend raises, but there is an urgent need to get humanitarian aid in and to provide safety for those who face the most horrendous circumstances at the moment. She is right that in a situation such as this, with such terrible conflict, families get separated and need the support to reunite.

Financial Transparency: Overseas Territories

Rebecca Long Bailey Excerpts

Wednesday 5th November 2025 Westminster Hall

[Rebecca Long Bailey (Salford) (Lab)]

I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Bolton West (Phil Brickell) for securing the debate.

It is a simple principle: profits should be taxed where real economic activity takes place. Yet that simple principle is routinely violated, and multinational corporations move billions through paper subsidiaries, internal loans and royalty payments to places where little or no real business occurs. As we have heard today, the result is devastating. For the United Kingdom alone, it represents tens of billions lost—money that should be funding our hospitals, schools, transport and care.

Sadly, the UK’s current approach is still falling short, so what must we do? First, we need real transparency. Public country-by-country reporting must be mandatory. beneficial ownership registers must be complete, verified and accessible to all, and there must be comprehensive disclosure of cross-border affiliate transactions of intra-group pricing and payments in dividends flowing to low or zero-tax jurisdictions.

Secondly, HMRC must be properly equipped. The Department is dramatically under-resourced, so it needs resources, specialist expertise and the independence to pursue large-scale investigations without political constraint. The diverted profits tax should be strengthened, and penalties must actually bite.

Thirdly, we need structural reform at home. The UK must stop indulging secrecy within its own network of territories. It should require those jurisdictions to meet the same standards of transparency and accountability as the mainland. We must make domestic law fit for purpose by ensuring that multinationals cannot hide behind opaque structures, and that the UK does not act as a facilitator for profit shifting through low-tax dependencies.

Broadly, we must lead reform on the international stage. Britain should champion stronger global agreements—not merely a minimalist 15% tax floor, but a framework that stops profit shifting altogether. That means automatic exchange of tax information, higher global minimum rates, global minimum tax enforcement standards, pressure for jurisdictions that facilitate profit shifting to reform, and co-ordinated sanctions imposed against them if they refuse to co-operate. Fundamentally, this is about fairness, accountability and the very future of democracy itself.

Oral Answers to Questions

Rebecca Long Bailey Excerpts

Tuesday 26th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[The Minister for Development (Anneliese Dodds)]

I am delighted to be able to take this question, as one of many Scots in the House. We are incredibly proud of brand Scotland, and our Scottish Secretary has been driving that forward and really pushing the case for Scotland’s place in the world, working as part of the UK. We will most certainly be celebrating St Andrew’s day—I certainly will.

[Rebecca Long Bailey (Salford) (Ind)]

T9.  Action for Humanity research conducted in Gaza revealed that 53% of respondents already received no humanitarian aid during so-called evacuations, and there are fears that the Knesset’s vote to sever ties with UNRWA is likely to reduce access to aid even further. The Minister has already referred to the representations that have been made, but what specific immediate actions will the Secretary of State undertake to reinforce the UN’s multilateral framework and the Israeli Government’s obligations under international law to ensure that sufficient aid reaches civilians in Gaza?

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I need to get other colleagues in. These are topical questions, and they are meant to be short and punchy.

Oral Answers to Questions

Rebecca Long Bailey Excerpts

Tuesday 19th January 2021 Commons Chamber

[Alison Thewliss (Glasgow Central) (SNP)]

What recent discussions he has had with the US Secretary of State on that Administration’s proposed designation of Houthis as a terror group.

[Rebecca Long Bailey (Salford and Eccles) (Lab)]

What support the UK is providing to the UN’s work to secure peace in Yemen.

--- Later in debate ---

[James Cleverly]

Following President Trump’s Administration’s decision to designate the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organisation, we have requested that the US put in place comprehensive exemptions to limit the humanitarian impact and the impact on commercial imports and the UN peace effort. Our priority is to support the UN peace effort, and my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary will engage with the incoming US Administration on this and a number of other important bilateral issues.

[Rebecca Long Bailey [V]]

Salford is home to one of the UK’s oldest Yemeni communities, as well as charities providing humanitarian relief to the region, and they fear that the US designation will have a devastating impact, as humanitarian access and the ability of food supplies and other goods to reach Yemeni civilians will be severely obstructed. I welcome the comments that the Minister has just made, but will he go one step further? Will he contact President-elect Biden and ask him to revoke the designation when he starts in office?

[James Cleverly]

My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary will no doubt engage at the earliest opportunity with the incoming Administration in the White House. I have made it clear that we have already requested the US to put in place comprehensive exemptions to facilitate humanitarian support. We will continue to work both bilaterally with the US and internationally through the UN and others to protect the people suffering in Yemen, to prevent famine where we can and to work with all parties involved to bring this extended conflict to a conclusion.

--- Later in debate ---

[Nigel Adams]

My hon. Friend is 100% correct to raise this matter again. He is a constant champion for his constituents on this area. We do recognise that there are human rights concerns in both India-administered Kashmir and Pakistan-administered Kashmir. Again, we encourage all states to ensure that domestic laws are in line with international standards and to co-operate with UN human rights officials and all mechanisms of the Human Rights Council. We have requested permission for officials from the British high commission in New Delhi to visit India-administered Kashmir as soon as the situation permits.

[Rebecca Long Bailey (Salford and Eccles) (Lab)]

If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.

[The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs and First Secretary of State (Dominic Raab)]

Since the last oral questions, I have visited India, where I had positive conversations with Prime Minister Modi, Foreign Minister Jaishankar and others about strengthening our trade, our security co-operation and, indeed, human rights, which Members have asked about in this session. Last week, I introduced measures to ensure that no British organisations—Government or private—profit from, or contribute to, human rights violations in Xinjiang. Last month, we delivered the historic EU-UK trade and co-operation agreement, which is an excellent deal for all parts of the United Kingdom.

[Rebecca Long Bailey [V]]

I certainly welcome the comments of the Minister for the Middle East and North Africa earlier regarding the situation in Yemen. However, will the Government now back up their words with action, and suspend all arms sales and military support to the Saudi-led coalition for use in Yemen, especially in the context of President-elect Biden’s commitment to end the war in Yemen?

[Dominic Raab]

We are absolutely pushing every lever to try to precipitate peace in relation to Yemen. Our arms exports to Saudi, to which the hon. Member referred, are subject to a world-leading and very rigorous process, so we are ensuring that we do everything that is required on that front. On 3 December, I announced an extra £40 million of UK aid to help 1.5 million households to access food and medicines, and of course we are pushing, through every possible avenue, the efforts of UN special envoy Martin Griffiths.