§ Mr. CohenTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the problem of cyber-laundering of money and assets; what proposals he has for(a) national and (b) international measures to combat it; and if he will make a statement. [86857]
§ Ms Hewitt(a) The Government are determined to tackle money laundering in all its forms. The obligations under the Money Laundering Regulations 1993 to report all suspicious transactions, to keep records, to train staff and to establish the identity of customers apply irrespective of whether the business is carried out electronically or otherwise. The Government will be looking at whether additional measures are needed to tackle the laundering of money by electronic means in the course of discussions with other member states on a possible Second EC Money Laundering Directive. Meanwhile the Financial Services and Markets Bill will enhance the powers of the Financial Services Authority to combat money laundering carried out through financial institutions, including those offering services over the internet.
(b) The UK chaired a meeting of anti money laundering experts from the member countries of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in November 1998. That meeting discussed, among other things, the threat from cyber-laundering and shared experiences in combating it. A report on that meeting was published by the FATF in February 1999 and is available on the FATF's internet website.
The Government are committed to the prevention of cybercrime as a whole. To this end, it is participating in the negotiation of a Council of Europe Cybercrime Convention. Domestically, the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) chairs a tripartite forum with government officials and the Internet Service Providers to develop measures for law enforcement and protection of internet users.