7: Ukraine Crisis & Economic Crime Bill

The main topic of conversation this week continues to be the Ukraine crisis and its rippling effects on the UK and beyond. Fresh sanctions on Russian oligarchs are being imposed daily with Chelsea FC owner, Roman Abramovich, the latest to be sanctioned by the UK government as part of its response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Another key talking point is the Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Bill that was discussed in the House of Lords yesterday. The Bill seeks to establish a register of overseas entities and their beneficial owners, amend financial sanctions law and reform the UK’s Unexplained Wealth Order (UWO) to empower criminal investigators.

A long-awaited white paper was published on corporate transparency and register reform recently, which sets out plans to enhance the role of Companies House and to increase the transparency of UK corporate entities. We have been expecting this announcement for some time and these reforms have been accelerated in response to the current crisis in Ukraine.

The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) has also published a warning about the impact of the crisis. They estimate that GDP growth in the UK will more than half from the previous forecast of 4.2%, to 1.9%. Inflation is forecast to hit 8.7% in Q2 2022, and disposable income is forecast to fall 4.8% - which is the largest drop in living standards since records began. Oil and gas charges, rocketing again because of the conflict, will drive prices up as food transport and production costs also escalate - the CEBR expects the combined effects will shave £2,553 off household budgets in 2022...