MONEY launderers and tax-dodgers will be “rubbing their hands with glee” over government plans to set up a maximum of 10 free ports on the shores of Britain, Labour said yesterday.

Free ports are legally outside of the British customs territory and are effectively classed as “offshore” for tax purposes.

International Trade Secretary Liz Truss said the plan was to create “the world’s most advanced free port model” as soon as possible.

After Brexit, seaports and airports will be invited to bid to become one of up to 10 free ports. Ms Truss claimed that the ports would use onshore enterprise and manufacturing as the “gateway to our future prosperity, creating thousands of jobs.”

But shadow international trade secretary Barry Gardiner said: “Free ports and free enterprise zones risk companies shutting up shop in one part of the country in order to exploit tax breaks elsewhere and, worst of all, lower employment rights.

“The British people did not vote for this new administration and they certainly did not vote to see their jobs and livelihoods threatened in favour of gifting further tax breaks to big companies and their bosses.”

Writing in the Star today, Labour’s shadow home secretary Diane Abbott writes that free ports are “typically used to store high-value items such as artworks, precious stones or antiques” and have been heavily criticised by a European Parliament report for facilitating “illegal activity.”

Britain operated several free ports from the 1980s until 2012 such as in Birmingham, Belfast, Cardiff, Liverpool, Prestwick and Southampton. A free port remains on the crown dependency of the Isle of Man.

There are also around 80 free ports across the EU as well as in Dubai, Singapore and Shenzhen and Shanghai. The US also has around 250 such trade zones.