PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Foreign Companies: Ownership (15 December 2017)

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when she plans to create a public register showing the beneficial owners of overseas legal entities which (a) own or buy property in the UK and (b) secure contracts from central Government.

Asked by:
Dr Rupa Huq (Labour)

On 11 December the Government published its new Anti-Corruption Strategy. In the Strategy we have committed to publish a draft bill in this session of Parliament for the establishment of a public register of beneficial ownership of overseas legal entities.

The Department ran a call for evidence on this policy earlier in 2017. We will publish a response to the call for evidence early in 2018 and will also set out more detail on the timeline for publishing the legislation.

Answered by:
Margot James (Conservative)
20 December 2017