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London’s mayor Sadiq Khan calls for register of foreign-owned

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Luxury residential townhouses stand overlooking Regents Park in London, U.K., on Friday, Nov. 29, 2019. U.K. house prices increased at their fastest pace in more than a year in November, according to Nationwide Building Society.

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The Mayor of London has called for a register of overseas property ownership in a bid to crack down on money laundering as threats of Russian sanctions intensify.

Sadiq Khan said a lack of transparency around property ownership in Britain was enabling allies of Russian President Vladimir Putin to shelter billions of pounds worth of undeclared sums in the capital and across the country.

The government planned to have a register operational by 2021. But five years after work on the proposals commenced, Khan said there was still no meaningful legislation in place.

“The slow pace of progress on this issue has been bitterly disappointing – and it will prevent the government acting on their tough talk about further sanctions if they are imposed on Putin’s regime,” Khan said.

The mayor noted that the opaqueness of the current system could be aiding offences such as tax evasion and money laundering, as well as hiding the assets of those targeted by economic sanctions.

It comes as the U.K. government threatens tough sanctions if Russia invades Ukraine, with Foreign Secretary Liz Truss warning that oligarchs with links to the Kremlin would have “nowhere to hide.”

Yet a recent report by cross-party members of parliament found that the U.K.’s law enforcement regime is not “up to the job” of preventing fraud and money laundering seeping into its financial system.

Swelling foreign property ownership

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London’s mayor Sadiq Khan calls for register of foreign-owned