- New standards for confiscating proceeds of crime confirmed
today to ensure crime does not pay.
- Landmark change requires countries to have non-conviction
confiscation powers already in use in the UK.
- More criminal proceeds to be recovered as implementation of
higher minimum standards enable improved cross border
cooperation.
International action on confiscating the proceeds of crime is to
be toughened after a global standard setter today, 27 October,
unveiled new rules that represent a major step forward in the
fight against economic crime.
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) as the global
Anti-Money Laundering standard setter has announced it is
adopting a new set of strengthened standards for seizure and
confiscation, as a two-year project co-led by the UK reached its
conclusion.
Law enforcement needs a suite of tools to disrupt and
disincentivise criminals and strip them of their ill-gotten
gains. Over 200 countries worldwide are signed up to the new
wide-ranging standards, which for the first time include
requirements for non-conviction based confiscation - a useful
alternative or supplement to criminal proceedings and an already
well used route in the UK to disrupt crime.
The UK’s domestic confiscation powers have been expanded in
recent years, leading to the record recovery of almost £340m in
2022 to 2023 – a 75% increase compared to £194m in 2017 to 2018.
Of this, £160.1 million was recovered using the UK’s
non-conviction based powers.
Treasury Lords Minister said:
“These new requirements for countries around the world make a
difference here at home too – helping disrupt economic crime even
when it crosses borders.
“Britain has been consistently driving higher standards in
recovering proceeds of crime at the international table and the
news today is both long overdue and hugely welcome.”
Security Minister said:
”Criminals shouldn’t be allowed to enjoy their ill-gotten gains.
Stripping them of their profits sends a clear signal that we will
not tolerate their actions.
“The new standards set by the Financial Action Task Force are an
important step in the right direction and send a powerful
message.
“We will continue working with the global community to
proactively target criminals, take their dirty money and use it
for the public good.”
Further information
- The full text of the changes is to be published by the
Financial Action Task Force in the coming months. The
FATF was set
up by the G7 in 1989 to tackle dirty money from drug
trafficking. Its mandate has since expanded to look at illicit
financial flows across different crime types.
- The Government’s second
Economic Crime Plan committed to “Strengthen[ing]
international asset recovery standards to improve cross-border
asset recovery outcomes”. The updated standards deliver on this
commitment.
- Under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA) £339.1 million of
assets were recovered from Confiscation, Forfeiture, and Civil
Recovery Orders in the financial year 2022 to 2023. This
represents another high year of asset recovery and is a 75%
increase compared to £193.8 million in 2017 to 2018.
- Of this, £160.1 million was recovered using the UK’s
non-conviction based powers - £97.2 million was recovered through
Forfeiture Order receipts; and £62.9 million was recovered
through Civil Recovery Order Receipts, the highest value ever
recorded, driven by a £53.9m order obtained by the National Crime
Agency (NCA).
