My Lords, I say to the noble Lord, Lord Lennie, that I often find myself in agreement with my noble friend. I very much appreciate the spirit behind this amendment, which would require anti-money laundering checks to be undertaken before any UK company can be incorporated by preventing the Registrar of Companies registering a company unless they are satisfied that such checks have been carried out. The amendment goes on to say that the registrar is entitled to accept the anti-money laundering registration number of the UK body that has submitted the application. The effect would be to require all incorporations to be made through a UK body that is regulated for anti-money laundering purposes.
In Committee, the Government made a number of points about the effect of requiring Companies House to operate in the same fashion as company formation agents. My noble friend Lord Naseby has clearly reflected on the points made, and the amendment responds to our concerns by allowing Companies House to accept the anti-money laundering registration number of the UK body making the application. However, this would still prevent people incorporating companies directly with Companies House and would therefore make company formation only possible via an agent that is also a registered money laundering supervisor. In doing so, it will end the current streamlined service offered by the Government under which companies can incorporate directly at Companies House and register with HMRC for certain taxes, such as corporation tax, as part of the same process.
The Government also recognise that there are sincere concerns here, which my noble friend outlined. We have listened to them, and I hope that I can set out some detail of what conclusions we have drawn thus far as a result of considering them. Before I do so, I will make one practical point. As my noble friend will be aware, the UK’s anti-money laundering regime will be evaluated by the Financial Action Task Force in March of this year. We expect the report to be made public in late 2018. This review will explicitly cover the effectiveness of how the UK prevents the misuse of legal persons such as companies for money laundering or terrorist financing. The Government have already provided extensive documentation to the FATF team conducting the review, which will be followed up by the team conducting an on-site visit within the UK. This will greatly inform the future of the UK’s anti-money laundering regime, including on the important point my noble friend made on how we can best prevent the
misuse of legal entities. It will therefore be of great assistance in moving forward in this area and many others.
Following the FATF evaluation, which will report back later this year, the Government will actively consider areas where the AML/CTF framework can be improved. I can also confirm that the Government will look in particular at controls over who registers companies in the UK, what information they have to provide, and how assurance is provided over that information, which were concerns highlighted eloquently by my noble friend.
It is of course absolutely right that we should take steps, as was pointed out in Committee, to avoid corporate vehicles being used for money laundering. However, it is equally important that we balance tackling illicit finance with proportionate regulation for what I know all noble Lords acknowledge is the vast majority of legitimate businesses. The UK rightly prides itself on being one of the easier countries in the world to set up and run a business, and we are ranked in the top 10 countries for doing so. To register a company at Companies House is not in itself a suspicious act, which I know my noble friend acknowledges. It is a strength of our system that people can set up an off-the-shelf company or can incorporate online at little cost. This is particularly relevant to our smaller businesses sector and those starting businesses for the first time. I am sure that all noble Lords acknowledge that it is of great benefit to our economy and encourages a more entrepreneurial culture in the UK as a whole.
I am sure that my noble friend acknowledges that a newly formed company is not itself a money laundering risk; it must carry out some other transaction to achieve an illicit purpose. When a company undertakes an activity that may increase the risk of money laundering activities—for example, by opening a bank account—at that stage it becomes subject to quite stringent due diligence measures. Regulated firms, such as banks, solicitors and accountants, are also then required to conduct due diligence on existing customers on an ongoing, risk-sensitive basis.
I am sure that noble Lords will also acknowledge that the cornerstone of our anti-money laundering system is taking a risk-based approach. Indeed, anti-money laundering supervisory authorities are under a legal obligation to identify and assess the international and domestic risks of money laundering and terrorist financing to which its sector is subject. This ensures that the most intensive levels of supervision are applied to those entities which present the highest risks of money laundering.
I have outlined the steps we are taking and pointed out that we are awaiting the FATF evaluation, and I confirmed the important point that after the evaluation the Government will look at controls over who registers companies in the UK. I also say to my noble friend that I would very much look forward to working with him and appropriate Ministers from the BEIS department to see how we can perhaps reflect some of the key points he raised in any subsequent action the Government will take in the light of that report. With those reassurances, and acknowledging the important work he has done in this respect, I hope that my noble friend will be minded to withdraw his amendment.