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Written question asked by Baroness Helic (Conservative) on Monday, 22 June 2026, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Monday, 6 July 2026. It was answered by Lord Hanson of Flint (Labour) on Monday, 6 July 2026 on behalf of the Home Office.

Foreign Influence Registration Scheme: Sanctions

Question

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme provides sufficient transparency where influence activities in the UK are undertaken on behalf of a foreign political entity whose senior leadership includes persons subject to UK sanctions; and if so, on what basis they have reached that conclusion.

Answer

FIRS is a two-tier scheme introduced as part of the National Security Act (2023). The political influence tier aims to provide transparency of foreign state-directed political influence activities in the UK, while the enhanced tier requires transparency of a broader range of activity where Government has determined that a greater level of scrutiny is needed to protect the safety or interests of the UK.

We will be publishing an annual report setting out, amongst other things, the number of registrations received. The first report will be published after the scheme has been live for a year and is one of the key transparency benefits of FIRS, providing an insight over time into activities and arrangements that would otherwise have remained unknown.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
HL1159
Session
2026-27
Subjects
Sanctions Foreign influence registration scheme
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk