True transparency isn’t just about who owns the land, but also about who controls it. Fortunately, the privatisation was cancelled by Osborne’s successor, Philip Hammond. Indeed, far from empowering the Land Registry, there were two attempts (while George Osborne was Chancellor) to flog it off to the highest bidder.
DOOMSDAY BOOK REGISTRATION
The Government could put this right if wanted to - for instance by requiring registration as a condition of receiving farm subsidies - but it hasn’t. There is no requirement that it has to be, unless sold or inherited. Guy Shrubsole - author of Who Owns England? - puts the cost at £72 million.Įven then, about a sixth of the land in this country isn’t registered at all. However, to get this data for the whole of England and Wales would be extortionately expensive. For a fee, the Land Registry does provide limited information on individual plots. Suggested reading Ukraine is winning the online warįor instance, it should be possible to go to an official website and freely access a map showing exactly who owns every piece of land in the country. The Government’s inactions are consistent with this country’s general lack of transparency over property ownership. Some might suspect undue influence, but there’s no need for conspiracy theories. It’s as if it were already drafted, ready-and-waiting to go - so why did it take Putin’s bloody war to prompt ministers to act? This week, a panicked Government pulled its finger out and by Tuesday, the Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Bill made its long overdue appearance. When pressed to do so, ministers just answered that “we will legislate when parliamentary time allows”. In fact, until the events of last week, the necessary legislation hadn’t even been scheduled. In 2018, the Government expressed its intention for the register to be operational by 2021. There was a consultation 2017, followed by a draft bill - and yet more consultation.
Rather, the problem was the glacial pace of implementation. Can we blame his successor? Did Theresa May drop the idea when she took over? No, it continued as official policy under her administration - and also Boris Johnson’s. Hosting the corruption summit was one of his last acts as PM. But that’s all the more reason why the effort should have started years ago. Establishing their true ownership is no small task.
Admittedly, there are nearly 100,000 properties owned by foreign companies in the UK. It seems ridiculous that its modern-day equivalent should take so much longer. Yet William’s surveyors completed their work - which became the Domesday Book - in 1086. In 1085, William the Conqueror ordered a Great Survey, which covered every county of England and named over 13,000 places. Let’s hope so - because it’s been almost six years since the Tories promised the property register and it hasn’t happened yet. “We are going faster and harder to tear back the façade,” he said. This week, Boris Johnson finally committed his government to the necessary measures. Well, it might have been had ministers got on with the job but they dawdled. And to emphasise Britain’s leadership on this matter, it was stated that “this will be the first register of its kind anywhere in the world”. An accompanying press release promised that this “will include companies who already own property in the UK, not just those wishing to buy”. Instead of hiding behind shell companies and other legal smokescreens, “everyone in the world will be able to see who really owns and controls each and every company”. His specific pledge was to create a “new public register of beneficial ownership” for foreign companies operating in the UK. Suggested reading How Vladimir Putin weaponises refugees
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