The Home Office is to introduce a new serious crime bill in the Queen’s speech to Parliament tomorrow, which is designed to tackle professional advisers who deal with criminal gangs.

A Home Office spokesman said: ‘Organised crime groups use a range of associates, both professional and non-professional, to help them in their illegal activity, for example by writing contracts, renting warehouse space or delivering packages. But these associates can currently adopt a “no questions asked” approach and then can claim in court they were unaware of the precise nature of the criminality they were involved in.’

Under the proposed new legislation, those convicted of helping criminals could face up to five years’ in jail, plus a new civil order which would restrict their travel and who they associate with, to reduce opportunities for further criminal behaviour.

Government analysis suggests that between 100 to 200 'enablers', including lawyers and accountants, could face prosecution if there are ‘reasonable grounds to suspect they were helping a crime group to carry out their activities’.

Home Office minister Karen Bradley, said: ‘Nobody is above the law. But for too long corrupt lawyers, accountants and other professionals have tried to evade justice by hiding behind a veneer of respectability. This new offence sends out a clear message to those individuals: if you are helping to oil the wheels of organised crime, you will be prosecuted and face being jailed.’

ACCA has challenged the government’s plans, saying that more effective enforcement of existing legislation is needed rather than adding what it calls ‘an unnecessary layer to the current anti-money laundering regime’. It pointed out that accountants are expected to look beyond the immediate facts of a situation and adopt an air of scepticism about clients and their behaviour. 

John Davies, ACCA’s head of business law said: ‘The UK already has one of the toughest anti-money laundering regimes in the world and imposes requirements that are over and above those called for by European Union law and international authorities. The consequences for accountants and lawyers breaching the statutory obligations they are subject to are severe and can lead to fines, imprisonment and loss of livelihood. The sentences that have been imposed on professional advisers under the existing Proceeds of Crime Act demonstrate that the legislation has teeth, though the key, as always, is effective enforcement.’

Davies also warned that accountants acting in good faith, without undue suspicion of any criminal activity by a client, could find themselves liable to prosecution. ‘There is currently a statutory defence to a charge of failing to disclose information relating to criminal activity and that centres on the defendant having a reasonable excuse. While this is admittedly vague, it is seldom used in practice and is considered essential in order to provide protection for advisors who may find themselves in situations of real stress and danger. It would be a retrograde step to remove this protective clause,’ he said.

The government’s new legislation will also include tougher penalties for organised criminals who fail to pay orders confiscating their criminal assets, such as longer sentences, no automatic early release and overseas travel bans. Those who face confiscation orders of between £500,000 and £1m could see the default sentence for failing to pay rise from five to seven years, while it will rise from 10 years to 14 for those who are ordered to hand over assets of more than £1m.

Earlier this year the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) was highly critical of the current system for clawing back repayments from criminals, calculating that just 26p in every £100 of criminal proceeds was paid back last year. PAC said under the current system many criminals were able to keep the proceeds of crime by choosing to go to jail rather than make a payment.

Some £1.48bn is currently outstanding in unpaid confiscation orders, with the oldest outstanding amount, £300,000, dating back to 1988.