Some question the ability of free ports to stimulate trade and argue that they facilitate money laundering and tax evasion for the wealthy. — Reuters pic
But some question their ability to stimulate trade and argue that they facilitate money laundering and tax evasion for the wealthy.Free ports — similar to free zones or enterprise zones — are usually located near ports or airports. However, free ports specifically aim to encourage businesses that import, process and re-export goods.
Britain previously experimented with the concept under prime minister Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s, and some 38 free zones were designated between 1981 and 1996. But it is widely expected to choose sites in relatively poor parts of northern England, where Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Tories won numerous seats in December elections on pledges of revitalising the region.By leaving the EU, Britain will be able to create free ports without having to comply with the bloc’s rules, such as on state aid, or even the more flexible strictures of the World Trade Organisation.
Alex Cobham, of the non-governmental TJN, said the Mona Lisa could be put in a secret deposit box in a free port and it would be “almost impossible” for authorities to locate it.