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This push for clarity is welcome. But as someone working closely with AML compliance in legal practice, I think it's important to put this in context. My own assessment based on the current approach taken by the SRA and the content of its Sectoral Risk Assessment (referring to the National Risk Assessment) is that any genuine easing of the regulatory burden will likely apply only to low or standard-risk matters under the higher-level framework.

High-risk work, such as conveyancing, is unlikely to benefit from any such relaxation. As the article notes, the government is under international pressure to strengthen, not weaken, its defences against financial crime. Given the scale of funds involved in conveyancing and the well-documented use of UK property as a vehicle for laundering illicit wealth, it’s difficult to see how this area will be considered for deregulation.

In short, this won't be a green light for firms to scale back due diligence on high-risk matters. Rather, it'll be a chance to realign compliance efforts more intelligently, prioritising resource where the risk genuinely lies, without abandoning safeguards where they are most needed.