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Prime Minister David Lammy said that if Labour came to power he would ban wealthy individuals, including Russian oligarchs, from bringing false cases to silence journalists and activists.
In an interview IThe shadow foreign secretary said a ban on so-called SLAPP orders would be part of Labour’s strategy to close down the “London laundromats” of dirty money in the UK.
The acronym Slapp was coined in the US and stands for “Strategic Litigation for Public Participation.”
This refers to legal claims that are perceived as being brought not on legal grounds but to silence critics by embroiling them in costly litigation.
On Tuesday, Mr Lammy will argue that the Conservatives are allowing Russian individuals who have been sanctioned since President Vladimir Putin’s all-out invasion of Ukraine to bring legal action “against the very people who are trying to expose corruption”.
In recent years, scrutiny of the wealthy by journalists and activists has frequently been thwarted by threats of lawsuits, particularly from Russian oligarchs.
Ramey said:: “We really must stop this from happening. These actions effectively stifle not only the rule of law and freedom of speech, but also the rights of journalists, whose job it is to bring greater transparency and shine a spotlight on the most egregious acts of oligarchy, plutocracy and deeply corrupt individuals doing bad things.”
Last year, the Conservative government backed a private member’s bill to ban slaps, but the bill failed to become law before a general election was called.
Labor’s six-point plan to crack down on Russia’s ‘dirty money’
- Host a summit of allied countries and international financial centers to launch sustained efforts to tackle corrupt financing.
- We will ensure that the UK’s sanctions regime targets criminals and demonstrate global leadership in tackling those who enable criminal politics by launching a new whistleblower reward scheme.
- Expand registration requirements, take steps to stop UK trusts being used for unlawful activity and set out an action plan to bring full transparency about trust ownership of UK property.
- Use the UK’s diplomatic influence to push for the establishment of an International Anti-Corruption Court to prosecute the most egregious acts of international corruption.
- We will work with British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies to develop clear, time-bound action plans within Government to ensure they all fully comply with transparency requirements.
- Eliminate the use of SLAPP lawsuits by oligarchs who use their wealth to silence people who ask legitimate questions.
The bill, introduced by Labour MP Wayne David, says SLAP laws are widening beyond Russian oligarchs and allies of Putin to new crimes, including “misconduct such as victims of sexual harassment being silenced by their perpetrators, and landlords using coercive tactics to silence suffering tenants in their own homes”.
But the Law Society was concerned about the bill’s “feasibility and potential unintended consequences” and argued it should include a “substantial redrafting” of the objective test that defines a SLAPP case and what is defined as “in the public interest.”
“I’m very pleased to be working with the Law Society, which has done a very good job in supporting the government, and the Law Commission, to get the wording right,” Mr Lammy said.
The announcement about Slaps will come alongside details of Mr Lammy’s plans to “drive out kleptocrats and close London’s laundromats” if Labour comes to power.
He will argue that 14 years of Conservative government have left the UK “dangerously exposed to kleptocracy and international corruption, particularly from Russia”.
In April, Deputy Foreign Secretary Andrew Mitchell confirmed that around 40% of the world’s “dirty money” is laundered in London and British overseas territories and Crown dependencies.
The National Crime Agency estimates that more than £100 billion is laundered in the UK each year, an amount greater than the UK’s annual defence budget.
There have been no convictions for sanctions evasion in the UK since 2009, despite the government taking action against 140 Putin supporters since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Labour vows to implement key sanctions measures against Russia, but Lammy claims they are currently being blatantly ignored.
“Under this Conservative government, corrupt politicians in our capital have turned London into a money-laundering haven, where billions of dollars are now being laundered in Britain by its enemies and dangerous criminals,” Lammy said.
“This is fuelling crime on Britain’s streets, skyrocketing house prices and a serious threat to the Kremlin. We must stand up for ourselves and the rule of law. It’s time to get rid of the kleptocrats.”
Lammy added that the UK’s role as an international money laundering hub was raised during his recent visit to Washington DC.
“Our security partners see us not only failing, but also too often allowing Russian kleptocrats to gain power and for the Russian government to gain access to components used in their own military.”
Money laundering prosecutions in the UK fell by 44% between 2011 and 2023, while convictions fell by 42%.
Mr Lammy said Labour would “defend the city of London and our professions”, but added: “Our competitiveness depends on a reputation of the highest standards – and there are severe consequences if we fail to protect it.”
What are Slaps?
Most of the claims identified as Slapps concern defamation, but other legal claims relating to the publication of information, such as privacy, copyright and data protection, may also be relevant.
Critics say such claims limit press freedom by deterring journalists and others from publishing criticism or allegations of misconduct through the threat of costly lawsuits.
One of the most notorious examples occurred in January 2023, when it emerged that the UK Treasury had authorised the legal representatives of Yevgeny Prigozhin, a former ally of Putin and the late founder of the Wagner Group, to issue a SLAPP order against British journalist Elliot Higgins.
SLAPP is not limited to Russian oligarchs, but has also allegedly been used against prominent figures implicated in recent British political scandals.
In 2020, lawyers acting for entrepreneur Baroness Michelle Mone wrote to the Financial Times about an investigation into more than £200 million of Covid-19 PPE contracts won by companies linked to her and her husband, Doug Barrowman.
Baroness Monnet later admitted that she had made a profit of £60 million from the deal.
Hanover Bond Law, which no longer represents Baroness Mourne, told the Financial Times that it would “swiftly take legal action against any attempts to mislead our clients into believing they are not parties to the relevant contracts.”
But the law firm argued that the warning “cannot in any way be considered a SLAPP.”
Anti-SLAPP laws are already in place in most US states, and Brussels is also considering its own measures for the EU.