British Lawmakers Push for Release of £3 Billion in Seized Venezuelan Gold Following Devastating Earthquakes

Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)— The UK-based Venezuela Solidarity Campaign (VSC) reported on Saturday that British Member of Parliament (MP) Richard Burgon has introduced an Early Day Motion (EDM) in the House of Commons demanding the immediate release of 31 tons of Venezuelan gold currently held by the Bank of England (BoE). The initiative specifies that the resources should be returned to the Venezuelan people to fund reconstruction efforts and address the humanitarian emergency caused by the devastating June 24 double earthquake.

The motion, filed on June 29, 2026, has garnered the support of 30 members of parliament out of the 650-seat house.

This legislative push aligns with an international campaign launched last Wednesday by Venezuelan Acting President Delcy Rodríguez, who announced a targeted diplomatic effort to recover the nation’s financial assets frozen abroad to reinforce disaster response mechanisms.

“Among other measures, I have decided to send a letter to the King of England to release the gold that is being held in the BoE,” Rodríguez stated. “That gold belongs to our people, and that gold should be used to address the terrible, tragic consequences of this double earthquake.”

Details of the parliamentary motion
The full text and tracking of the resolution can be found at this link.

The official resolution reads:

That this House expresses its deepest condolences to the people of Venezuela following the devastating earthquake that has caused widespread loss of life and destruction, with reports of over 1,000 deaths, thousands more injured and displaced, and many tens of thousands of people missing; welcomes the Government’s initial provision of humanitarian assistance to Venezuela, including the deployment of specialist search and rescue personnel; is concerned that Venezuela’s gold reserves, held at the Bank of England and now reportedly worth around £3 billion, remain inaccessible to address the catastrophic human impact of the earthquake and to support reconstruction because of an ongoing political dispute over which Venezuelan representatives the UK recognises as the country’s legitimate government; believes that, in the face of such an overwhelming catastrophe, every available resource should be directed towards humanitarian relief, reconstruction and the recovery of affected communities; and therefore calls on the Government to take urgent steps to facilitate the release of Venezuela’s gold reserves held at the Bank of England so that they can be used to support humanitarian relief and the reconstruction of areas devastated by the earthquake.

A history of imperialist dispossession
Since 2019, Venezuela has faced the systemic seizure of billions of dollars in assets by financial institutions across North America and Europe. The Bank of England, among others, justified freezing these reserves by citing their governments’ political recognition of the U.S.-backed regime change operation led by former deputy Juan Guaidó.

Though the parallel “interim government” strategy ultimately collapsed, foreign banking institutions have continued to withhold the assets from the legitimate Venezuelan state. Analysts point out that this coordinated international asset freeze, combined with intensifying sanctions on financial transactions and oil production, severely exacerbated an domestic economic crisis already strained by illegal US sanctions imposed since 2014.

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The 31 metric tons of gold bars remain locked in the Bank of England’s London vaults. Due to a dramatic surge in the global market price of bullion, the value of Venezuela’s frozen maritime reserves has more than tripled since the initial blocking. The assets, which were valued at approximately $1.2 billion in 2019 and $1.95 billion in 2020, have reached a market valuation of $4.6 billion (£3.5 billion) in 2026.

Special for Orinoco Tribune by staff

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