Muscat calls for FIAU laws to be respected

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat sounded the call for laws surrounding the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit to be respected by those with political responsibility, stating that those laws are in place for a reason.

Speaking in Parliament this evening, Muscat failed to point anybody out directly. Nationalist Party MEP David Casa has repeatedly issued statements about a leaked FIAU report and that he would be publishing it shortly. The FIAU has said that this would be in breach of national law.

Muscat was fielding questions by Opposition leader Adrian Delia, who asked if a rule of law report penned by MEPs would be considered, and whether the FIAU would be given better resources to manage its pending investigations.

The Prime Minister said that the institution has been equipped by successive governments, and that any assertion that Malta is a tax haven is incorrect. Today, a Financial Secrecy Index bumped Malta up from 27^th place to 20^th place and fourth in the EU, after the Netherlands, Germany and Luxembourg.

Muscat insisted that elements in the MEP rule of law where factually incorrect.

Finance Minister announces joint committee to oversee EU anti-money laundering directive

Finance Minister Edward Scicluna has revealed that a joint committee was set up, which includes the police, the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU), the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) and the Central Bank of Malta to oversee the fourth EU anti-money laundering directive.

New anti-money laundering laws coming from the EU impose stringent conditions on banks and financial intermediaries in a bid to stem financial crime and the financing of terrorism. The directive widens the definition of what a Politically Exposed Person is, provides strict requirements for current information of beneficial ownership of companies registered within the EU and vamps up Know-Your-Client requirements.

The committee has "commissioned a study, which is an action plan, based on the national risk assessment.  We are meeting often in order to figure out how we will be implementing this action plan."

This evening in parliament, Scicluna also said that Moneyval - a Council of Europe anti-money laundering committee and EFSA will be embarking on two missions to Malta to assess anti-money laundering regulations and see that structures in place are working effectively.

from The Malta Independent http://ift.tt/2GtyJQS
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