Johnson's government ends 'golden visas' for Russian oligarchs

The British Minister of the Interior, Priti Patel, on October 6 in Manchester. OLI SCARFF (AFP)

The British Minister of the Interior, Priti Patel, announced this Thursday the immediate cancellation of the Level 1 Investor Visa program, known in practice as the

, which facilitated British residence and nationality (in a few years, in the case of the latter) of those billionaires who invested two million pounds (about 2.4 million euros, at current exchange rates) in government bonds or shares of companies listed on the London Stock Exchange.

The measure, introduced by the Labor government in 2008 to deal with the financial crisis, ended up being a drain on money from the Russian mafia.

The increasingly lofty tone of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson against the government of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his constant warning of harsh economic sanctions if the Kremlin decides to invade Ukraine collided with the stark realization that London has been being free territory for many oligarchs.

Not only that, but reports produced by the House of Commons itself have denounced the way in which Russian capital has infiltrated UK politics and business.

Since the beginning of the crisis in Ukraine, Downing Street has promoted a series of measures and announcements to convince its main ally, the Administration of US President Joe Biden, that it is serious about combating money laundering of dubious origin. or directly criminal.

“I have zero tolerance for abuses of our immigration system.

Under my new plan, I want to ensure that British citizens have full confidence in the system, and that includes preventing corrupt elites from threatening our national security and moving dirty money through our cities,” said Patel.

Until March 2020, the British Government had granted visas of this type to 2,581 Russian citizens.

The previous conservative government of Theresa May has already promised to review at least 600 of those visas, given the growing suspicion of abuses of the system.

The Security and Intelligence Committee of the British Parliament, in a devastating 2020 report on Russian penetration in the spheres of political and economic power in the United Kingdom, called for a “firmer approach” when granting these visas.

Since 2015, visa applicants have been required to have a bank account in the United Kingdom, and a check of their economic history is carried out, but in the so-called "blind period" —between 2008 and 2015— the Government was limited to making their own controls the companies that received the investment.

The companies, in turn, considered the granted visa a seal of legitimacy.

For each other, they turned a blind eye to the arrival of huge amounts of dubious money.

“For years, the Conservatives have been unable to eradicate the influence of Russian money in the United Kingdom,” said the Labor spokeswoman for the Interior, Yvette Cooper, who has demanded that the report promised by the Government on the errors made by the Tier 1 Investor Visa system.

Johnson's government urgently approved additional legislation last week that allows for personal economic sanctions against Putin's entourage and the Kremlin.

The law in force until now required a direct link between companies or individuals with the destabilization of Ukraine in order to be sanctioned.

Downing Street has already begun the parliamentary process of the new Law on Economic Crimes, with which the fight against fraud will be toughened and measures will be promoted to clarify the inexplicable wealth of many oligarchs based in the United Kingdom.

The priority objective will focus on changing the rules of the so-called Companies House, the public commercial registry based in Cardiff (Wales), where until now it is still possible to register a company for just 15 euros,

without anyone verifying the true identity of the registered owners.

Johnson promised last Tuesday in the House of Commons to speed up new measures to "pursue Russian money that has come into this country", right in the middle of the current crisis in Ukraine.

Parliamentary procedures, however, are slow.

The approval process may not be complete until the second half of this year.

Many deputies and pressure groups have demanded greater speed from the Government.

“Any setback, particularly at a time like the present, would be very unfortunate,” warned Conservative MP Andrew Mitchell, one of the MPs who has been demanding transparency measures for the longest time to end the fact that London is the capital of the money laundering.

Johnson promised last Tuesday in the House of Commons to speed up new measures to "pursue Russian money that has come into this country", right in the middle of the current crisis in Ukraine.

Parliamentary procedures, however, are slow.

The approval process may not be complete until the second half of this year.

Many deputies and pressure groups have demanded greater speed from the Government.

“Any setback, particularly at a time like the present, would be very unfortunate,” warned Conservative MP Andrew Mitchell, one of the MPs who has been demanding transparency measures for the longest time to end the fact that London is the capital of the money laundering.

Johnson promised last Tuesday in the House of Commons to speed up new measures to "pursue Russian money that has come into this country", right in the middle of the current crisis in Ukraine.

Parliamentary procedures, however, are slow.

The approval process may not be complete until the second half of this year.

Many deputies and pressure groups have demanded greater speed from the Government.

“Any setback, particularly at a time like the present, would be very unfortunate,” warned Conservative MP Andrew Mitchell, one of the MPs who has been demanding transparency measures for the longest time to end the fact that London is the capital of the money laundering.

right in the middle of the current crisis in Ukraine.

Parliamentary procedures, however, are slow.

The approval process may not be complete until the second half of this year.

Many deputies and pressure groups have demanded greater speed from the Government.

“Any setback, particularly at a time like the present, would be very unfortunate,” warned Conservative MP Andrew Mitchell, one of the MPs who has been demanding transparency measures for the longest time to end the fact that London is the capital of the money laundering.

right in the middle of the current crisis in Ukraine.

Parliamentary procedures, however, are slow.

The approval process may not be complete until the second half of this year.

Many deputies and pressure groups have demanded greater speed from the Government.

“Any setback, particularly at a time like the present, would be very unfortunate,” warned Conservative MP Andrew Mitchell, one of the MPs who has been demanding transparency measures for the longest time to end the fact that London is the capital of the money laundering.

For now, the Johnson government has sought a first blow with the annulment of the

, which serves to strengthen its credibility with Washington but also to prevent London from returning if the Ukraine crisis turns into something serious. to be a sieve for oligarchs linked to the Kremlin.

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