Boris Johnson finally explains why Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has not been sanctioned yet

Prime Minister Boris Johnson says the government must carry out ‘due process’ before sanctioning Roman Abramovich to avoid being met by a ‘brick wall of lawyers’.

There have been growing calls for the oligarch, who has owned Chelsea since 2003, to be included in the economic measures being taken against Russians who are said to have ties to Vladimir Putin following the invasion of Ukraine.

‘He’s a person of interest to the Home Office because of his links to the Russian state and his public association with corrupt activity and practices,’ said Labour leader Keir Starmer of Abramovich in parliament on Wednesday.

‘Last week, the Prime Minister said that Abramovich is facing sanctions. He later corrected the record to say that he isn’t. Well, why on earth isn’t he?’

For the latest updates on the Russia-Ukraine war, visit our live blog: Russia-Ukraine live

In response, Johnson dodged the question and said it ‘would not be appropriate to comment on individual cases at this stage’, with the PM and ministers refusing to go into any details about Abramovich – who denies links to Putin – and whether he would be sanctioned.

But now in an interview with foreign press on Friday, Johnson has at last suggested Abramovich is facing the possibility of sanctions but the government needs to have a watertight case before proceeding.

Asked why Abramovich still has not been sanctioned, Johnson told Italian newspaper La Repubblica and others: ‘None of us want to live in a country where the state can take your house off you without a very high burden of proof and due process.

‘There’s no point saying, yeah, we’re going to go after him, and then you come up against the brick wall of lawyers. So we have to get it right.

To view this video please enable