Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (High-Risk Countries) (Amendment) Regulations 2023

Amy Callaghan Excerpts

Monday 10th July 2023 General Committees

[Amy Callaghan (East Dunbartonshire) (SNP)]

We on the SNP Benches support this necessary update to the money laundering and terrorist financing regulations to remove Cambodia and Morocco from the list of high-risk third countries in the context of the enhanced due diligence requirements. It is also worth flagging up, given that the Minister raised the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill, that it is unfortunate that the Government have failed to grasp the opportunity to make that Bill as strong as it could have been, and I ask the Minister why he chose not to accept the SNP amendment upholding the integrity of the Companies House register.

4.39 pm

[Andrew Griffith]

It is always a pleasure to follow the hon. Members for Hampstead and Kilburn and for East Dunbartonshire. It is important, as the hon. Member for Hampstead and Kilburn said, that we continue to work with the overseas territories—Gibraltar and the Cayman Islands. It is a sign of our rigorous commitment to FATF that they are on the list in this jurisdiction; some other countries would have fudged the list for their own overseas territories. We have always adhered to the highest standards of FATF. The hon. Lady is quite right that that is not the most comfortable position for us as we seek the highest reputation for our own financial services. We continue to work with the territories and I do not have any specific update, but I will ask the question and if there is anything more material to say I will write to her. Otherwise, I hope that she will accept that we continue to work together on the issue and her points are well made in that regard.

On the SNP amendment, I am advised that the simple reason for not bringing it to the Committee today is that it was not relevant to the debate. I imagine that that decision was made by the House authorities or the Table Office. That does not diminish the point made by the hon. Member for East Dunbartonshire and a number of Bills before the House, including the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill, seek to address her concern about the transparency of beneficial ownership. I hope that she will be content with that answer as it is the best I can do today.

Question put and agreed to.