Margaret Hodge is MP for Barking

This Government's plan to scrap the Human Rights Act epitomises their attitude to the law. Remove all scrutiny, all checks, all accountability to achieve its agenda. Pick and choose the laws that work for them. A dangerous precedent is being set.

Today I spoke to @MattChorley about the forthcoming Economic Crime Bill. Matt is right - I have been banging on about this for a long time. While it shouldn't have taken the tragedy in Ukraine to address Britain's dirty money problem, hopefully now we can drive out this evil.

In order to clamp down on tax dodging, we must tackle the role of the enablers that devise & promote aggressive tax avoidance schemes. At present it's very difficult to prosecute these enablers when their advice turns out to be unlawful.
https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/margaret-hodge-mps-labour-andrew-mitchell-parliament-b1007319.html

Today I am thinking of all those who knew, loved and cared for Jo.

In her memory, we continue to fight for the hope that a more equal world is possible.

We are far more in common that that which divides us.

Northern Ireland, Rwanda, Partygate, prorogration, corrupt COVID Contracts, cash for honours & access. Johnson is trying to bring our country down into the gutter with him. The rule of law is just an inconvenience for this Government, rather than the bedrock of British democracy.

First Rwanda flights taking off. 5 year anniversary of Grenfell & still little justice. Today should shame us.

The Law Commission report on Corporate Criminal Liability is a thundering disappointment. It lets corporate criminals & the enablers of economic crime off the hook. A once-in-a-generation chance for reform has left the door open for further inaction on tackling illicit finance.

Great to talk to old friends and new allies at the @FairTaxMark conference this afternoon. Tax avoidance & dirty money are two sides of the same coin - that’s why it will take a huge joint effort from business, NGOs, politicians & more to eradicate these twin evils from Britain.

Our financial system is infected with dirty money, but Britain will never prosper until we flush out this illicit wealth. This would be good for business, good for tax revenue & good for everyone as the cost of living crisis truly bites.

Hear my view on ⁦@TimesRadio⁩ 👇

I’m old enough to remember decimalisation. It caused inflation as people used the change to put up prices. What a silly, ill thought idea to turn the clock back and play to xenophobic instincts with zero thought of what will happen. Focus on the problems, not political gimmicks

Well said. There is a huge disparity between how DWP chases up benefits claimants while HMRC is in comparison relatively lax in going after tax fraudsters.

Brilliant research by @taxwatch backs this up - https://www.taxwatchuk.org/tax_crime_vs_benefits_crime/ https://twitter.com/BootstrapCook/status/1529861737947844614

With this rudderless rabble in Govt and people really struggling with the cost of living, Labour have had to step in and are setting tax policy. Finally the Chancellor sees sense with his catchily-titled new “temporary targeted energy profits levy”. A windfall tax in all but name

"Whatever the initial intent, what took place at many of these gatherings... was not in line with Covid guidance."

This failure lies in the hands of the leadership in Downing Street - and who else is this other than Johnson.

Windfall tax. Now.
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/may/24/energy-bills-likely-to-rise-by-800-in-october-says-ofgem-chief?CMP=share_btn_tw

Cracking down on kleptocrats, pushing for better healthcare, and bussing around future Premier League stars. A week in the life of an MP...

Read my @NewStatesman diary here: https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/labour/2022/05/margaret-hodges-diary-keir-starmers-honourable-announcement-and-why-im-a-proud-granny

Making light of sexual assault... the state of the Conservative Party. https://twitter.com/Mike_Fabricant/status/1526865527246831616

Was a pleasure to speak at the Speaker's Advisory Committee on Works of Art. This years focus was on Lucy Baldwin - a feminist campaigner who dedicated her life to better maternity care. She detailed how women are morally superior to men - someone to look up too for sure!

While “partygate” rightly causes outrage, more serious wrongdoing that threatens our democracy goes unchecked.

Sleaze is the new norm. Shady donations, VIP contracts, cash for access, the revolving door and worse. Dirty money is corrupting our politics. https://www.ft.com/content/e730ad1c-1913-451f-97b6-a6ad475a7459

Dirty money is corrupting our politics. The bad behaviours that flourish in the financial world are now infecting the public sphere. As checks and balances are eroded, we are losing our moral compass.

See my new @policyatkings report that explores this: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/policy-institute/assets/losing-our-moral-compass-corrupt-money-and-corrupt-politics.pdf

Britain is now a country of choice for too many criminals trading in dirty money. But our cross party group of MPs have a plan to stop this. Listen here 👇
https://youtu.be/VONk8i7xSh8 via @YouTube

This desperate plan to fire 90,000 officials is a telling sign of a Government flat out of ideas. While the cost of living crisis rages on, you can put their plans for real reform on a cigarette paper. Our hollowed-out civil service is in dire need of more expertise, not less.

Today @taxinparliament & @APPGbanking launched our cross-party Economic Crime Manifesto. We set out a pragmatic set of reforms to drive out dirty money and once again make Britain a trusted jurisdiction.

You can find read the manifesto here: https://anticorruption-responsibletax.org/research

Launching today, @kevinhollinrake & I's economic crime manifesto will reinforce Britain’s reputation for integrity & make us the destination of choice for clean finance.

This is a unique opportunity to root out dirty money.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/scrub-a-little-harder-and-we-can-banish-dirty-money-3dzjvf8ml

Today I challenged the Home Secretary @pritipatel on the forthcoming Economic Crime Bill. It must ensure transparency, it must ensure our enforcement agencies are fully funded & it must ensure the enablers of economic crime are held to account.