UK’s Dame Hodge sent to BVI over financial secrecy delays
The United Kingdom has dispatched its anti-corruption champion, Dame Margaret Hodge, to the BVI amid concerns about delays in introducing adequate measures aimed at tackling financial crime.
Foreign Office Minister Stephen Doughty announced on Wednesday that Dame Hodge would undertake a “fact-finding” mission to the BVI, following frustration over the territory’s slow progress in establishing transparent registers of corporate ownership. According to the UK Guardian, the measure is intended to help curb secrecy that campaigners argue benefits criminals and kleptocrats.
“This government is committed to tackling illicit finance and working with our overseas territories is crucial to addressing this issue in the UK and overseas,” Doughty stated. “Some of our overseas territories are making progress towards transparent, accessible registers of company ownership, but we have made clear we need to see rapid, consistent progress across the board.”
The BVI government had pledged in November 2024 to implement legitimate interest access registers of beneficial ownership, known as Liarbos, alongside four other overseas territories. These registers would act as a step towards fully publicly accessible registers of beneficial ownership (Parbos), which have been a longstanding goal of successive UK governments.
“As an immediate next step, I have asked Baroness Hodge to undertake a fact-finding visit to the British Virgin Islands and report back to me. I will consider further steps carefully in light of the findings,” Doughty said.
Dame Hodge, 80, was named the UK’s anti-corruption champion in December 2024. She has a long record in combating illicit finance and promoting transparency in Britain’s offshore financial centres. Before standing down from Parliament last year, she served as Labour MP for Barking from 1994 and held six ministerial positions.
Companies registered in the BVI have been named in several high-profile international investigations, including the Paradise Papers. These reports revealed alleged tax evasion activities involving figures such as Russian oligarchs and former Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich.
Speaking on behalf of the BVI government, a spokesperson said: “We continue to collaborate closely with international partners, including the UK government, working together to uphold high standards and protect our financial system.”
“This week’s productive talks in London between Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley and Minister Stephen Doughty reflect our shared commitment to strengthening governance and democracy in the Virgin Islands. We look forward to building on this cooperation in a spirit of mutual respect.”
Foreign Secretary David Lammy has publicly committed to ending corporate secrecy in jurisdictions like the BVI.
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Good.
Time to get serious about curbing corruption in VI.
Natalie following on where &drew left.
VI fallen into one big dirt filled Pot hole.
We have a Premier who does not know how to tell the truth. The Minister said in his statement that he will send Margaret Hodge to the BVI to see our progress on the open register. Natalio in his statement is saying that he invited her to come. Why would you invite her here in the first place and secondly Natalio and Yhe Overseas minister are saying two different things. Based on all the fables that Natalio have been telling I believe the overseas minister.
HERE COMES TROUBLE
She’s the boogey woman? All of a sudden the secrecy going to stop?
SECRET SECRET SECRETS.
BVI Business
Airport
Concerts
Bank of Asia
COI
Greenhouses
Roads
Infrastructure
Water
We need to re do COI. Government has not embraced any reforms.
Fahie and Wheatley Gang have set Independence for VI back decades.
You really think them care about that
even if them don’t care…it will always put a smile on my face to see our no good politicians and their cronies get jacked up.
pushing corruption and bold face with it while your people suffer. doing no work for the people but everything else for self enrichment.
ok lets both suffer
This should be interesting. Remember this is Lorna’s “big friend” from long ago.
I hope it’s not a replay of the fiery BBC Radio 4 debate between Dame Margaret Hodge and Hon. Lorna Smith that aired on the Today Programme on May 1, 2018
Who would remember all these details that you just wrote except someone trying to play up Lorna Smith? I hope the woman ask her about the 5M of taxpayers money in the defunct bank of Asia that she was the chairman of.
Feeds right into the notion that y’all have short memories!!
The Right Person At The Right Time!!!
She is a No Nonsense Person. Let us show her BVI LOVE!!!! Will the Public have an opportunity to
converse with her? Has the Order In Council been Lifted???? Enquiring Minds want to know..
Please look into the 5 million Bank of Asia.
uh oh
Don’t say such stupid things. We will never get independence the way things are going. Dame Hodge please come and do a deep dive it really is necessary
comes the colonial master with her red, white and blue imperialist slave whip.
Regardless of what those elected officials may or may not be doing, we should not have to live through these kinds of humiliating experiences.
We not UK’s children and we are not children of a lesser God. We are human beings.
The current coloniist politicalarrangement must be shattered immediately. This beyond modern or humane.
We must begin to change this.
many to most do not post comments on this site for thumbs up.
They. post to either inform or state a fact or truth. Some cares not about a thumbs up or down, as we don’t expect white especially to show positivism to anything we write that does not speak TO TRUTH OR UPLIFTS THEM POSITIVELY.
As, we know that white and UK people are inherently incapable of reading and accepting the truth where ever and whom ever states it..
So keepon sitting on yors back wheels, sipping your tea and living from comment to comment daily. Soo, your thumbs down to truths and facts will not change who or what we are or think.
We never needed any colonial master coming to do a thing, it’s our people who won’t look after themselves with love for their race, white people look after their race.our premiere and other independent countries keep attending these commonwealth meetings set up by their former colonizers to have their brains harvested, how to think and become a functionary that colonial power has been devolved too, so they treat us bad as slaves with bad road and sewage and take our $5 million USD and give it to bank of Asia to be validated as good finance minister and just crash the countries budget for health and road infrastructure and took quarter million USD to give Vybz Kartel, and do not give an ears to the BVI subjects of natalio Wheatley.
I tis time someone really look into what is going on under the Governor nose. He does not have enough eyes behind his bac to understand the subtle corrupt ways of this society
I love it, it’s about time UK.
NO TO UK.
Your respect for local Black Virgin Islanders is foul with imperialist implcations, AND IS IN NEED OF MODIFICATION.
Your regular commentary reeks with thousands years old white hatred, with UK privilege and entitlement.
You continue to ignore the facts that we are human beings, deserving of life, liberty and happiness, and have ived here for centuries.
You continue to scream “YES TO UK,” CONTINUEING TO INSULT THE LOCAL, LOCAL POPULATION.
WE ARE HERE, BEEN HERE, AND OUR EXISTENCE ON THESE LITTLE BIRD SANCTUARY ROCKS DO MATTER SIGNIFICANTLY.
Were it not for our hard work in developing a vibrant economy, neither you nor your UKites would not even know that we existed.
The desire to steal, kidnapped and hoard what is not yours have been a centuries old mentality in your people.
It must stop. Give us the respect we have earned.
You may have ruled the pen for centuries, but we are now beginning to rewrite our future. Believe it or not. Time will tell.
What you say about our impeccable history may have been true before 1984 when we embraced offshore finance. The wealth it brought us has affected our morals and greediness prevails in almost every part of public life.
BVI allow people to come here, take up space, own things, not integrate and still turn around and laugh at them to their faces… Hopefully they learn
She should have been here at least for two Years…..
she need to ask him about the 5 million dollars to bank of asia
order in council coming near you! lmfao
i cant wait to see whats revealed
and the those of you who defending it with the politicians will look so dumb.
#bankofasia
Here is black enslavement
The millions the Premier do not know about
Bank
Of Asia poor investment
Money collected at the various ports of entey and the ports are filty
Unkept
Sargussum piling up where does the money go to clean up these specific areas
That is black enslavement
The cries of Seniors and pensioners for a raise and nothing was done
That is enslavementt
Members of government living in such luxry while others suffer with no consideration
That is enslavement
The price of a whole.grain whole wheat bread for
$9:00 and change ( No orivce control
That is enslsvrment
Want more
she should face a Q&A with industry. She is a deceitful and hated figure in the UK. Her false narrative ought to exposed.
The last thing we need is this rich Gucci socialist hypocrite. Ask her about her family’s secret holding in Jersey.
Born Oppenheimer in Cairo, yes the Diamond family who have grown mega rich on the exploitation of African workers. She is not here to help.
Oh noes, here comes the stern faced yt woman. Get in line, negroes!
The UK just wants to cripple the financial industrial in the bvi.
@ @YES TO. You continue to scream “YES TO UK,” CONTINUEING TO INSULT THE LOCAL, LOCAL POPULATION. You want to be wrong and strong most of you keep forgetting that the UK owns the BVI and you don’t to own up to the fact that the government of the BVI is who got us in this position. The UK is not our enemy its people like you and the government are the enemies so just up and I am not from the UK.
rich exploiter of Black people and their resources coming to put these Black in their places.
The mor things appear to change they do not, they just remain the with the exploiters of humanity continuously calling the shots, and we have not a choice, but to accept.
Behold that face.
The reincarnaion of a human trafficking, people enslaving profiteering mongul.
Where will she stay when she comes?
Will it be at. governer’s mansion?
Whose interest will she be looking after?
Will she visit, conversate with and assertain the issues of the people? definitely not.
Where these and other critical question are answered will indicate how the view these islands..
As, it isknown fact that there views of us are still mired in the seventh century. Thier interest in us does not go beyond mere subjects.
Sooo, the Kingdom, has no “secrecies, that benefits criminals, and kleptocrats”, whereas, Dame Hodge, can be BETTER USEFUL, in her own backyard, rooting out criminals-“financial” criminals, rather than ours?
You see, the level of hypocrisy, in the Kingdom is astonishing, to say the least!
But you see, as long as there is a chance, that African descendants,appears successful, and, is, a part of the Kingdoms’ system of governance, those African descendants, and the systems supporting their successes,SHALL
BE VILLIFIED, AND, DESTROYED!
Someone ask her why she supports the genocide of Palestinian people. She is the leading Friends of Israel mouthpiece in the UK government.
I want someone to come down hard on corruption here, but she might just be worst person to do it.
This has nothing to do with the current regime. This has to do with financial services across the board. The British govt is trying their best to destroy the VI financial services industry. Secrecy is the cornerstone of the financial services industry. The more you reduce the secrecy the less relevant it will be. Think people,.think.