The UK’s Venezuela Solidarity Campaign (VSC) is gaining momentum, with 14,500 people signing its petition. The campaign aims to secure the release of 31 tonnes of gold belonging to the Venezuela Government which is currently being held in the vaults of the Bank of England in order to help with relief after the June earthquakes.
Since 2019, Venezuela has faced the seizure of billions of dollars in assets by financial institutions across North America and Europe.
Due to a dramatic surge in the global market price of gold bullion, the value of Venezuela’s frozen reserves has more than tripled since the initial blocking. The assets, which were valued at approximately $1.2bn in 2019 and $1.95bn in 2020, have reached a market valuation of $4.6bn (£3.5bn) in 2026.
This means that the gold held by the Bank of England is equivalent to 15% of Venezuela’s total foreign currency reserves.
The VSC argues that the gold should be returned to the Venezuelan people to help fund reconstruction efforts and address the humanitarian emergency caused by the devastating 24 June earthquakes.
The responses to the humanitarian crisis
In response to the horrific effects of the earthquakes, an early day motion (EDM) was filed in the House of Commons by MP Richard Burgon on 29 June 2026. It urges the UK Government to return the gold in the face of the destruction caused by the earthquakes, with now over 6,000 people being reported dead and tens of thousands injured.
It has gained the support of 32 MPs and the VSC is using social media to publish the fact that the Bank of England holds this gold and so far has refused to release it to help with the humanitarian effort.
This EDM was timed with the launch of an international campaign launched by Venezuelan Acting President Delcy Rodríguez, who announced a targeted diplomatic effort to recover the nation’s frozen financial assets to reinforce disaster and humanitarian aid.
On 8 July 2026, Rodríguez sent a letter to King Charles asking for the release of the gold. As her reasoning, she said: “That gold belongs to our people, and that gold should be used to address the terrible, tragic consequences of this double earthquake.”
The Bank of England’s position
The UK Government maintains that it is not a party to the court case over the gold. Former Labour Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper had said that the UK’s position “remained unchanged” because successive governments had not recognised the Venezuelan authorities.
The basis, therefore, for the Bank of England’s freezing and holding of these reserves is this lack of political recognition.
The fight continues
Despite the international resistance to returning the gold, in August the Venezuela Government and sectors of the Venezuelan opposition agreed to work together to try to recover the gold held at the Bank of England, with the intention of using the funds for reconstruction following the earthquakes. Details of the talks and progress have not been disclosed.
They are also ironing out plans for controls and independent auditing over how the money would be used to rebuild post-earthquake if the campaigns to release the funds are successful.
Francisco Dominguez, the secretary of the UK’s VSC, said: “The UK government’s retention of the gold belonging to Venezuela is unjust and utterly immoral, particularly given the devastation and suffering currently endured by the Venezuelan people in the wake of the earthquake. The VSC is appealing to Andy Burnham, to immediately return these assets on humanitarian grounds, and the VSC says it will keep up its campaign to get the gold returned through political and public campaigning.“
However, with some reports suggesting that we are nearing a deal to transfer about $4bn of the country’s gold held at the Bank of England to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, there is hope that the seven-year dispute over the frozen reserves is coming to a close and that Venezuela will finally have the chance to rebuild.
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