On Thursday 19 September in Strasbourg, MEPs adopted a resolution on the implementation of EU anti-money laundering legislation by 530 votes to 14, with 104 abstentions.
In their resolution, MEPs express their concerns about the failure of many Member States to implement the Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive and are worried that they will not meet the deadline for implementing the Fifth Directive, set for January 2020.
The European Commissioner for Justice, Věra Jourová, reported that infringement proceedings had been opened against all Member States concerning implementation of the Fourth Directive and that, to date, only five had been closed.
The European Commission has so far received only three notifications of full implementation of the Fifth Directive and five notifications of measures in place to implement it, she said.
The resolution also addresses the fragmentation of regulation and supervision. It therefore invites the Commission to consider whether a regulation would be a more appropriate legal act than a directive. In Commissioner Jourová's view, this would be a better solution, but she pointed out that the decision will no longer be in her hands in the new Commission under Ursula von der Leyen.
The MEPs also highlight the need to improve cooperation between Member States' administrative, judicial and law enforcement authorities and reiterate their request to the Commission to consider the possibility of creating a coordination and support mechanism.
The resolution makes passing reference to the Commission's report, published on 24 July (see EUROPE 12303/2), in which the Commission judged that specific anti-money laundering supervisory tasks could be entrusted to a body of the European Union. In the debate preceding the vote, several MEPs from the EPP, S&D and Greens/EFA groups supported the establishment of a specific European authority.
It should be noted that all the amendments proposed by the ID Group were rejected and that its alternative motion for a resolution was not put to the vote. The group wanted NGOs to be recognised as “organisations at risk” in the fight against money laundering as they may act as a front for terrorist organisations. The group asked the Commission to expressly include NGOs in the scope of EU rules.
EU ‘blacklist’. During the debate, Commissioner Jourová also reviewed the Commission's new methodology for drawing up the European list of third countries with anti-money laundering measures that pose a threat to the European financial system (see EUROPE 12193/28).
“Our aim is to ensure consensus between all the institutions on the process in order to avoid either the European Parliament or the Council rejecting the list”, she said.
As currently constituted, the new methodology provides for increased engagement with third countries before they are listed (see EUROPE 12321/1). She explained that, on the basis of a preliminary assessment, the Commission will give some countries a year to implement measures to fill gaps in their systems, while those with very high risk levels will be included in the list immediately.
In their resolution, MEPs ask the Commission to further examine the possibility of drawing up a 'grey' list of countries that potentially present a significant risk, along the lines of the one that exists for taxation.
They also believe that the length of the process for identifying third countries with strategic deficiencies might lead to unnecessary delays that could limit the effectiveness of the operation to combat money laundering.
The Commission's methodology will be presented and discussed by the European Finance Ministers at the Ecofin Council on 10 October. Finland, as President of the Council of the EU, also intends to invite ministers to adopt conclusions on a strategic agenda to combat money laundering by December. (Original version in French by Marion Fontana)