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<p>HM Treasury does not comment on specific licensing cases.</p><p> </p><p>HM Treasury’s
Office for Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) takes operational decisions relating
to the implementation of financial sanctions in line with the relevant regulations.
However, OFSI has not considered it appropriate for the Treasury to effectively decide
on whether a case has sufficient merit to be permitted to proceed by deciding whether
to license legal fees. Rather, OFSI's position has been that the merits should be
decided by the appropriate court. OFSI assesses cases on a costs-basis only, ensuring
that the fees requested are reasonable in accordance with the derogations available
under the sanctions regimes.</p><p> </p><p>We need to carefully balance the right
to legal representation - which is a fundamental one - with wider issues, including
the aim and purpose of the sanctions. It is right therefore that HM Treasury are examining
whether there are any changes that can be made to this policy. We will update the
House in due course.</p>
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