Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of registers of beneficial ownership in the Overseas Territories on the effective prosecution of fraud and economic crime.

This Government regards registers of beneficial ownership as key tools for tackling illicit finance, including investigating fraud and economic crime by law enforcement both in the UK and the Overseas Territories (OTs). The UK expects OTs to implement legitimate interest access registers at a minimum, and as soon as possible, in line with the commitments made at the Joint Ministerial Council in 2024. Our ultimate expectation is that the OTs implement fully public registers. I refer the Hon Member to my Written Ministerial Statements of 3 July and 22 July on this subject, and my contribution to the Westminster Hall debate on 5 November. I will provide a further update following the Joint Ministerial Council this month.