Oil corruption in Libya hinders the progress on the political process and facilitates the entrenchment of the status quo, threatening Libya's stability and future development. The UK continues to work with partners to tackle issues such as financial transparency and oil smuggling. UN Security Council Resolution 1970 and domestic UK legislation gives the UK the power to sanction individuals and entities who threaten the peace and stability of Libya. It would be inappropriate, however, to speculate on future designations as it could reduce their effectiveness.

The Home Office does not hold information on how many private investigators have been questioned by police over allegations of assisting Russia.

Departments across HMG including FCDO, HMT (through OFSI), DBT, DFT, HMRC, Home Office, and NCA, work together to ensure that UK companies are compliant with UK sanctions, including through guidance, engagement, civil enforcement and criminal prosecution.

The launch of the Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation (OTSI) by DBT will further enhance guidance and engagement with industry, as well as civil enforcement of trade sanctions.

Legislation is being enhanced to expand the powers to impose civil monetary penalties for breaches of both trade and transport sanctions measures.

The UK is concerned by the recent steps taken by Venezuela, with respect to the Essequibo region of Guyana. We believe the unilateral actions of Venezuela are unjustified and should cease. The UK is clear that the border was settled in 1899 through international arbitration. The UK has sanctioned 41 Venezuelans under our Venezuela Autonomous, Global Human Rights and Global Anti-Corruption frameworks. We do not have sectoral sanctions on Venezuela and are not at present considering changes to our sanctions position. It is a longstanding policy that we do not comment on future sanctions designations as to do so may reduce their impact. We keep our sanctions under review and reserve the right to introduce further measures.

On 30 November, the Foreign Secretary discussed Venezuela's steps with respect to the region of Essequibo in Guyana with President Ali of Guyana. We believe the unilateral actions of Venezuela are unjustified and should cease. The UK is clear that the border was settled in 1899 through international arbitration. The UK has sanctioned 41 Venezuelans under our Venezuela Autonomous, Global Human Rights and Global Anti-Corruption frameworks. We do not have sectoral sanctions on Venezuela and are not at present considering changes to our sanctions position. It is a longstanding policy that we do not comment on future sanctions designations as to do so may reduce their impact. We keep our sanctions under review and reserve the right to introduce further measures.

The UK is committed to supporting the UN-facilitated, Libyan-led and owned political process to secure peace, stability and prosperity in Libya. This offers the surest route to tackling challenges such as human rights violations and illegal migration.

We keep our sanctions under review but do not speculate on future designations as doing so could reduce their impact. We consistently demand full compliance with the UN arms embargo on Libya and have called for full implementation of the 2020 ceasefire agreement as set out in UN Security Council Resolution 2570, including the withdrawal of foreign forces and mercenaries, including the Russian Wagner Group.

The UK is committed to supporting the UN-facilitated, Libyan-led and owned political process to secure peace, stability and prosperity in Libya. This offers the surest route to tackling challenges such as human rights violations and illegal migration.

We keep our sanctions under review but do not speculate on future designations as doing so could reduce their impact. We consistently demand full compliance with the UN arms embargo on Libya and have called for full implementation of the 2020 ceasefire agreement as set out in UN Security Council Resolution 2570, including the withdrawal of foreign forces and mercenaries, including the Russian Wagner Group.

The UK is committed to supporting the UN-facilitated, Libyan-led and owned political process to secure peace, stability and prosperity in Libya. This offers the surest route to tackling challenges such as human rights violations and illegal migration.

We keep our sanctions under review but do not speculate on future designations as doing so could reduce their impact. We consistently demand full compliance with the UN arms embargo on Libya and have called for full implementation of the 2020 ceasefire agreement as set out in UN Security Council Resolution 2570, including the withdrawal of foreign forces and mercenaries, including the Russian Wagner Group.

The UK Government condemns Iran's financial support to militant and proscribed groups, including Hizballah which compromises the region's security and escalates already high tensions, with consequences for the international community. In 2019, the UK made its position clear by proscribing Hizballah in its entirety and put an asset freeze in place due to Hizballah's terrorist activity. We support the enforcement of UN prohibitions on Iranian weapons proliferation to non-state actors, including to Hizballah (UNSCR 1701). Our assessment remains that a sovereign Lebanon with strong institutions is the best way to tackle Hizballah's influence in Lebanon.

The UK Government is appalled by the brutal and ongoing repression that the Lukashenko regime conducts against its own people. We condemn the politically motivated sentencing and continued detention of Ales Bialiatski and Andrzej Poczobut. The UK Government keeps all sanctions regimes under review, however we do not speculate on future designations as to do so could reduce their impact.

Since 2020, the UK has imposed over 120 sanctions designations in response to the human rights violations and repression of civil society and democratic opposition that followed the flawed presidential election result in Belarus.

We do not speculate about future sanctions.

We do not speculate about future sanctions.

We assess that the National Bank Trust is owned by the Central Bank of Russia (CBR). The CBR is subject to a ban on the provision of financial services for the purposes of foreign exchange and asset management.

We do not speculate on future designations. We have already imposed severe restrictions on the Russian state's access to finance. We have blocked the Russian Government, and over 3 million Russian companies, from raising funds in the UK. We have blocked the Central Bank of Russia, Ministry of Finance and National Wealth Fund from accessing their overseas assets and foreign currency reserves. We have imposed asset freezes on 18 major banks with global assets worth £940 billion.

Legal services are distinct from other services in the role they play in supporting a flourishing democracy and upholding the rule of law. Access to legal professionals is considered a fundamental right in democratic societies. It enables businesses and individuals to exercise their rights and comply with their duties. We only have to look at Russia – where corruption is rife and Government critics are silenced - to see why the rule of law is so important. Here in the UK, rule of law means that everyone has a right to access legal representation. The Government needs to defend these rights – in contrast to authoritarian jurisdictions.

The legal sector is critical to the operation of an effective sanctions regime and law firms have a responsibility to protect the reputation of their profession and the integrity of our legal system. The Ministry of Justice is confident that the overwhelming majority of law firms operate to the highest ethical standard. Lawyers already face significant anti-money laundering responsibilities and duties, as well as strict procedures when transacting with sanctioned individuals (including within the Russian state). Licenses from the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) are required for payments to be made to law firms for legal services. And lawyers must abide by their professional codes of conduct, enforced by independent regulators such as the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) and the Bar Standards Board (BSB). In response to the crisis, the SRA has stepped up spot checks and investigations to monitor and enforce compliance with the sanctions regime.

The Government does not routinely hold information on law firms working on behalf of the Russian state.

The Government strongly condemns Russia’s unprovoked, flagrant actions. Russia must not be allowed to exploit major sporting and cultural events on the world stage to seek to legitimise its illegal invasion of Ukraine.

That is why we brought together an international coalition to see what more we could do to increase the pressure on Putin’s regime, and issued a joint statement with 36 other nations calling on international sporting federations to endorse the principles that:

• Russia and Belarus should not be permitted to host, bid for or be awarded any international sporting events.

• Individual athletes selected by Russia and Belarus, administrators and teams representing the Russian or Belarusian state should be banned from competing in other countries, including those representing bodies, cities or brands that are effectively representing Russia or Belarus, such as major football clubs.

• Wherever possible, appropriate actions should be taken to limit sponsorship and other financial support from entities with links to the Russian or Belarusian states.

The full statement is available here.

The issue of Russian or Belarussian individual sports persons participating in a truly neutral capacity - in the UK and overseas - adds further complexity, and our position will have the greatest impact if it is taken in line with other nations. We are engaging with national governing bodies, including the All England Lawn Tennis Club, and international counterparts in order to reach an agreed position that can be implemented as consistently as possible.

The UK and Mauritius remain close friends and Commonwealth partners. We remain open to dialogue on all shared issues of mutual interest, including the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) and its Marine Protected Area (MPA). The joint United Kingdom - United States defence facility on BIOT helps to keep people in Britain and around the world safe. For over 40 years the facility has helped the United Kingdom, United States, other allies and our regional partners, including Mauritius, combat some of the most challenging threats to international peace and security, including those from terrorism and piracy. This is only possible under the sovereignty of the United Kingdom. The joint facility is the result of a uniquely close and active defence and security partnership between two long-standing allies.

As the Foreign Secretary announced to the House in July 2020, work is underway to consider how an anti-corruption sanctions regime could be added to our armoury. Sanctions are powerful tools, capable of having a significant impact, and are complex to design. We are taking the time to ensure we get them right and will update Parliament in due course.

The UK Government publishes the UK sanctions list on GOV.UK website, which provides details of those individuals and entities designated under sanctions regulations made under the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act. When the UK Government makes a decision to create, change or remove a sanctions designation, it will update the UK sanctions list. All designations will need to meet the legal tests as set out in the Sanctions Act, which includes ensuring designations are underpinned by robust evidence. As set out in the legislation, designation decisions are for the Secretary of State.