Committee to Consider Financial Bills

A special select House Committee, to be chaired by Finance and Planning Minister, Dr. Omar Davies, has been appointed to consider the Money Laundering (Change of Name and Amendment) Act 2004 and the Financial Investigations Division Act 2004.
Other Committee members, who were named at yesterday’s (November 9) sitting of the House of Representatives are: National Security Minister, Dr. Peter Phillips; State Minister for Finance and Planning, Fitz Jackson; Member of Parliament for West St. Mary, Dr. Neil McGill; Member of Parliament for South West Clarendon, Charles Learmond; Opposition Speaker on Finance, Audley Shaw; Opposition Speaker on Justice, Delroy Chuck and Member of Parliament for West Central St. James, Clive Mullings.
The members will sit with a similar committee appointed by the Senate, to consider and report on the Bills.
Dr. Davies, who moved the motion for the Bills to be brought to committee, informed that the legislation completed the set of financial Bills introduced in the House in an attempt to bring the country’s financial laws in line with other countries in the region and the wider international community.
The Financial Investigations Division Act provides for the establishment of a government department, to be called the Financial Investigations Division, which will be responsible for the investigation of financial crimes and connected matters. The Money Laundering (Change of Name and Amendment) Act is designed to change the name of the Act and to expand the duties of financial institutions in respect of certain transactions and the reporting of such transactions.
Dr. Davies said that the decision to put the Bills to committee for further examination, would allow special interest groups to make submissions, which would ensure that the resulting legislation benefit from the “collective wisdom of Parliament and the country”.
Mr. Shaw endorsed the move, noting that “it is important that in the process of formulating these pieces of legislation, that our own people get an opportunity to fully understand the implications”.
“It will allow interest groups of whatever persuasion to come to the House and make their presentations,” he added.