Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, pursuant to the Answer of 2 May 2024 to Question 23506 on British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies: Companies, whether his Department plans to set a timetable for the introduction of public registers of beneficial ownership in the Overseas Territories.

In December, I [Minister Rutley] laid a Written Statement (HCWS150) that outlined Overseas Territories' commitments and timelines to implement public registers, either public registers accessible to all members of the public or public registers with access predicated on 'legitimate interest'. We are providing technical and financial assistance to expedite implementation in 2024 of these public registers. Where public access is predicated on 'legitimate interest' I have clearly stated to OT Governments the UK's expectation that this will be expansive, including media and civil society, among others, and an interim step to providing access to all members of the public in due course.