Blog

What role does the UK Parliament play in sanctioning an individual? [Video]

15 Mar 2022
Roman Abramovich’s motor yacht “Luna” docked in San Diego, January 2013. Photo by Sam Morris via Wikipedia (CC-BY-3.0)
Roman Abramovich’s motor yacht “Luna” docked in San Diego, January 2013. Photo by Sam Morris via Wikipedia (CC-BY-3.0)

Sanctions are imposed on an individual in two stages - by Ministers first making regulations and secondly designating the individual, using a power in those regulations. Parliament has a role in the first stage, but not the second.

Dheemanth Vangimalla , Researcher, Hansard Society
,
Researcher, Hansard Society

Dheemanth Vangimalla

Dheemanth Vangimalla
Researcher, Hansard Society

Dheemanth joined the Hansard Society in July 2021 as a Researcher to contribute to the Review of Delegated Legislation. His role also involves supporting the day-to-day delivery of the Society’s legislative monitoring service, the Statutory Instrument Tracker®.

Dheemanth has a diverse professional background that includes experience in both the legal and non-legal sectors. He completed his MBBS degree at the University of East Anglia. He has since attained a Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) while working full-time as a junior doctor at an NHS hospital trust. He has previously conducted legal research with the hospital’s legal services department. As a research assistant, he has also contributed to a public international law project concerning citizenship and statelessness. Additionally, he has experience conducting scientific and laboratory-based research during his BMedSci degree in Molecular Therapeutics at Queen Mary University of London.

Get our latest research, insights and events delivered to your inbox

Subscribe to our newsletter

We will never share your data with any third-parties.

Share this and support our work

In the UK, the legislative framework for sanctioning an individual has two stages.

The first stage is the use of powers delegated to Ministers in Acts of Parliament, often powers in the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018, to make regulations that specify the sanctions that can be imposed against individuals.

The role of Parliament depends on the purpose of the sanctions regulations.

If the regulations are made to comply with UN obligations then they are subject to the ‘made negative’ parliamentary scrutiny procedure – they don’t require active parliamentary approval to remain law but can be rejected by Parliament.

Ministers can also make regulations for what are called “discretionary purposes”. These are purposes listed in the Act such as furthering the prevention of terrorism or promoting the resolution of armed conflicts.

Generally, regulations made for discretionary purposes are subject to the ‘made affirmative’ procedure - they require retrospective parliamentary approval to remain law, usually within 28 days.

The second stage is the use of a designation power contained in the regulations to name and subject a person to sanction measures specified in the regulations, such as asset freezes or travel bans.

This is done on a separate administrative list. It does not involve Parliament.

The Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act 2022 has amended the requirements in the 2018 Sanctions Act that a Minister must meet before exercising a designation power under sanctions regulations.

As a standard procedure, a Minister must have “reasonable grounds” to designate someone.

The 2022 Act also adds an urgent procedure, under which a Minister can designate a person before establishing “reasonable grounds”, provided that relevant sanctions apply to that person under the law of certain international organisations and countries, such as the United States and the EU. The Minister must also consider that the urgent designation is in the public interest.

An urgent designation is temporary. It ceases to have effect after 8 weeks, though this can be extended by the Minister once, for a further 8 weeks. Before the period of urgent designation ends, the Minister must certify that there are reasonable grounds for the designation to continue to have effect.

Who funds this work?

This work is supported by the Legal Education Foundation as part of the Hansard Society's Delegated Legislation Review.

News / Parliament Matters – Legislative bodging: No way to run a chip shop! (Episode 6)

Mark and Ruth look at the growing fashion for re-writing Bills mid-air as they pass through Parliament, adding on all sorts of policy bells and whistles at the last minute.

24 Nov 2023
Read more

Publications / Delegated Legislation: What types are there, and how are they made?

Delegated legislation is the most common form of legislation in the United Kingdom. It is the legislation of everyday life, impacting millions of citizens daily. But the terminology and procedures that surround it are complex and often confusing. This explainer unpacks delegated legislation - the terminology and Parliament's role in scrutinising it - to reveal more about how delegated legislation really works.

05 Dec 2023
Read more

News / Parliament Matters: Total reshuffle, emergency legislation and Parliament’s ‘Golden Ticket’ (Episode 4)

What a week! Suella Braverman's sacking from Government was immediately eclipsed by the appointment of former Prime Minister David Cameron as the new Foreign Secretary. Mark and Ruth explore the many questions this raises, not least for scrutiny of foreign affairs by MPs.

17 Nov 2023
Read more

Blog / HS2 fiasco: What does it mean for Parliament?

The Prime Minister’s decision to cancel the next stage of HS2 has given rise to criticism that once again the Government has ridden roughshod over Parliament. Just over 1,300 hours of legislative time have been spent on four HS2-related Bills over nine Sessions in the last decade. Why has it taken so long and what now happens to that legislation?

15 Oct 2023
Read more

Briefings / 6 things to look out for in Parliament in the next Session

When parliamentarians reassemble at Westminster on 7 November for the start of the new Session, all eyes will be on the legislative programme to be announced in the King’s Speech. Speculation about the likely date of the next general election is rife at Westminster, but until the date is settled there are a lot of parliamentary issues still to be tackled. We’ve picked out a few things to look out for on the political horizon.

07 Nov 2023
Read more