Boris Johnson is the laughing stock of his allies particularly the USA, France and Germany. LONDON — When Boris Johnson announced in Parliament this past week “the largest and most severe package of economic sanctions that Russia has ever seen,” the British prime minister made a boast that drew guffaws. “Oligarchs in London,” Johnson declared, “will have nowhere to hide.” Except in plain sight, it appears.
Russian money is so ubiquitous, so notorious in Britain’s capital city that the global financial hub was long ago nicknamed “Londongrad.” It is an old joke, but not so funny to anti-corruption crusaders, kleptocracy tour operators and frustrated lawmakers, who have watched as post-Soviet elites with ties to the Kremlin snap up London townhouses and English estates, often bought anonymously through shell companies, with the profits generated by Russia’s version of crony capitalism. Chelsea football’s Roman Abramovich and the awkwardness of Russia sanctions After Johnson promised new sanctions against 100 Russian banks, defense contractors and oligarchs, to punish President Vladimir Putin and his circle for the invasion of Ukraine, many said the move was long overdue.
Belgravia's Eaton Square is known for its popularity as an address for Russian elites.
It shouldn’t have taken a war to force the British government to act on what had become an international money racket. The way Russians have used the city has even earned it a nickname: “the laundromat.”
Not every empty home is hiding dirty money, of course, but the result is the same: Anonymous wealth from overseas pushing up property prices for all, leaving housing inaccessible to the majority. The effect is that the commuter belt for the capital now extends as far as the south coast of England and north to Birmingham, England’s second-largest city. Some workers must commute two hours each way to afford to buy their own homes. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/03/01/uk-russia-oligarchs-london-money-boris-johnson-political-survival/
Just a tiny snapshot from a London that is uniquely placed to hurt Russia’s richest and most powerful – the class who could ultimately help decide how long Vladimir Putin sticks around. Yet London continues to pull its punches. In a mirthless sort of way, I enjoyed Boris Johnson thundering on Thursday that “oligarchs in London will have nowhere to hide”. Righto. That same morning, Andrey Guryev, the reported owner of Witanhurst, London’s second largest house after Buckingham Palace, could be seen on telly at Putin’s meeting of the oligarchs in the Kremlin. Not a great hiding place – but then, perhaps Andrey knows the seeker is so quarter-arsed he doesn’t actually need one. London’s fight against oligarchs reminds me a lot of Russia’s fight against doping in sports. Some real through-the-looking-glass stuff.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/feb/25/tories-oligarchs-london-government-putin-donations
Witanhurst Highgate W Hill, London N6 6LS, United Kingdom
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3094638/Riddle-300million-House-Secrets-finally-solved.html
'Moscow's gold'
A 2018 report by the Foreign Affairs Select Committee on Russian oligarch money was aptly called "Moscow's Gold. Russian Corruption in the UK." It came to the conclusion that for the government to ignore "London's role in hiding the proceeds of Kremlin-connected corruption risks signalling that the UK is not serious about confronting the full spectrum of President Putin's offensive measures."
"We have again to address the issue of the dirty money in the UK," said committee chairman and conservative lawmaker Tom Tugendhat, a popular interview partner these days, in an interview The Guardian in January. He plans to put the issue back on the agenda in the House of Commons and wants to know why the government hasn't taken any action. In an interview with the BBC, he stressed that "Britain has a responsibility to act because of London's global role in money laundering."
Those comments haven't endeared Tugendhat to members of his Conservative Party. Since Boris Johnson took office in 2019, the Tories have received about €2.4 million ($ 2.7 million) from Russian donors, according to official figures. Changes in legislation, which would have allowed for more transparency in real estate purchases in order to make money laundering more difficult, have stalled for years.
https://www.dw.com/en/londongrad-uks-tough-balancing-act-on-russian-sanctions/a-60774545
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQ9RQrcv3T8
Come on a tour of Boris's London with a difference and find out how Putin's oligarchs hide and spend their money in the capital. Money-laundering expert Oliver Bullough is your guide.
https://www.reuters.com/business/londongrad-tries-kick-its-30-year-russian-money-habit-2022-02-28/
Londongrad tries to kick its 30-year Russian money habit
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/inside-britains-beverly-hills-estate-26370997 Dubbed the 'Beverly Hills of Britain', a secluded estate in Surrey is ... just outside Weybridge,
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