Rachel Reeves vs The Snails

There are many news outlets that claim to be changing the world with their journalism. Only paying London Centric members can say their subscription has helped spark multiple debates about snail sex in the House of Commons.

This week we’re grateful to Phil Brickell MP, who read out chunks of our recent investigation into mollusc tax avoidance in the House of Commons during the debate that followed Rachel Reeves’ Budget speech.

Meanwhile, Kensington and Bayswater MP Joe Powell, who has also told the Commons about our dive into the world of amorous gastropods, was personally thanked by Reeves in her speech for highlighting the impact of tax evasion on high streets.

Powell has previously urged Reeves to act on London Centric’s story about central London’s blatantly tax-evading Harry Potter shops.

The London Assembly has also passed a motion urging Sadiq Khan to act on our reporting, with the assembly member who proposed it warning that “business rates avoidance schemes like bogus snail farms to fake places of worship drain millions from vital London services and undermine honest businesses”.

All in all, people are starting to notice what’s going on here.

It’s become fashionable to sound off about “money laundering fronts” filling London’s high streets. While this is undoubtedly part of the mix, cryptocurrency is often the favoured route for organised criminal gangs who want to move illicit funds to Dubai without the hassle of setting up a physical shopfront.

If you want to sound smarter, start by reading our past reporting on how the economic forces behind low quality shops are just as likely to involve brazen tax evasion, dodgy goods, and attempts to avoid business rates. If the government wants to raise revenue and boost the quality of high streets, then encouraging tax inspectors to walk down the high street is the real win-win. Canny politicians are increasingly making the link.

A phone call with the Snailer-in-chief

I gave Terry Ball, the UK’s leading snail farmer and tormenter of Westminster council, a ring this week. I wanted to see whether he’d had any response to our piece about his tax avoidance business and his Italian mafia links.

“Are you trying to make me famous?” Ball asked when he picked up the phone.

Ball couldn’t stop chuckling, saying he’d heard from people in America who had read the article. He laughed when told it had ...