Source: European Parliament
B9‑0210/2024
European Parliament resolution on Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1675 of 14 March 2024 4 amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1675 as regards adding Kenya and Namibia to the table in point I of the Annex and deleting Barbados, Gibraltar, Panama, Uganda and the United Arab Emirates from that table
(C(2024)1754) – 2024/2688(DEA))
The European Parliament,
– having regard to Commission delegated regulation (C(2024)1754),
– having regard to Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
– having regard to Directive (EU) 2015/849 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2015 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing, amending Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council, and repealing Directive 2005/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Commission Directive 2006/70/EC[1], and in particular Article 9(2) thereof,
– having regard to Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1675 of 14 July 2016 supplementing Directive (EU) 2015/849 of the European Parliament and of the Council by identifying high-risk third countries with strategic deficiencies[2], in particular the Annex thereto,
– having regard to Rule 111(3) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas since the 1960s Gibraltar is listed by the United Nations as a territory awaiting decolonisation;
B. whereas the colony of Gibraltar is widely recognised as an offshore financial centre with a favourable tax regime and financial regulation that has raised concerns for its use for illicit financial activities that result in a severe distortion of the European Economic Area (EEA);
C. whereas transparency and international cooperation are critical to the integrity of the global financial system and to combating money laundering, tax evasion and terrorist financing;
D. whereas concerns persist about financial opacity and the facilitation of illicit financial activities in the colony of Gibraltar that are affecting the whole EEA, in particular surrounding municipalities;
E. whereas Articles 61 and 62 of Directive (EU) 2015/849 highlight the need to identify and assess the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing in different financial sectors and activities;
F. whereas the colony of Gibraltar is listed as a non-cooperative jurisdiction in some Member States;
G. whereas the Commission delegated regulation does not properly take into account the threats to the international financial system, in accordance with the criteria set out in Directive (EU) 2015/849 and other relevant regulations;
H. whereas the Commission delegated regulation does not take into account the effective compliance of the colony of Gibraltar with international standards against money laundering, tax evasion and terrorist financing, in accordance with the provisions of the relevant articles of Directive (EU);
I. whereas the Commission delegated regulation does not encourage the current government of the colony of Gibraltar to take the necessary measures to protect the integrity of the global financial system and to prevent illicit financial activities, in accordance with the principles and objectives set out in the current Union legislation;
1. Objects to the Commission delegated regulation;
2. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission and to notify it that the delegated regulation cannot enter into force;
3. Calls on the Commission to submit a new delegated act which does not delete the colony of Gibraltar from the table in point I of the Annex to Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1675;
4. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and to the governments and parliaments of the Member States.
