1st May 2018 -- As the UK Parliament today prepares to vote on an amendment to impose public central registers of beneficial ownership on the Overseas Territories (OTs), British Virgin Islands (BVI) chief diplomat Benito Wheatley has told UK Government officials and Members of Parliament that the United Kingdom (UK) Kingdom’s current and future relationship with the Overseas Territories (OTs) should be based on mutual respect and prosperity, particularly as Britain prepares to leave the European Union (EU) in March 2019.
“The UK Parliament will decide on whether it wants the Overseas Territories as economic partners or financial liabilities to the UK Treasury going forward. Choosing to arbitrarily damage the economies of the OT Financial Centres that are well run jurisdictions would be a mistake. The territories should be seen as economic assets to the UK that will help to keep Britain competitive after Brexit,” Wheatley argued.
The BVI London Office, supported by BVI Finance and the BVI House Asia, have been urging Members of Parliament in the UK not to undermine the self-determination of the BVI and other Overseas Territories that hold responsibility for the regulation of their financial services industries and to not create an uneven playing field with the Crown Dependencies and other jurisdictions.
“The BVI has been of off UK grant-in-aid for 40 years and responsible for its own financial affairs. Any parliamentary attempts to undermine our self-determination as a people would be a retrograde step. We meet our international obligations as a jurisdiction in the areas of tax and transparency which should be celebrated,” said the territory’s UK & EU Representative.
The BVI London Office has also remained engaged with UK Government Officials from the Cabinet Office, Home Office and Foreign & Commonwealth Office to highlight the effectiveness of the BVI’s Beneficial Ownership Secure Search system (BOSSs) and robust regulation of the financial services industry. According to Wheatley.
“We have spared no effort in our outreach to ensure that all parties are clear on our effective beneficial ownership regime, favourable assessments by the FATF on anti-money laundering and good international cooperation with the UK and other jurisdictions. At political level, Premier Dr. Hon. D. Orlando Smith, OBE has continued to coordinate with political leaders and Ministers in the UK, Europe and the Caribbean.”
The BVI Government continues to work closely on the issue with members of the United Kingdom Overseas Territories Association (UKOTA), the Crown Dependencies and the CARICOM and OECS Secretariats.
The UK Parliament will debate the amendment on public registers of beneficial ownership today.
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British Virgin Islands News