The new year is the new year. I do not want to prejudge when that response might be. I have said enough, basically; obviously we are trying to respond to noble Lords’ questions on these matters as fully as we can, but that is as far as I am able to go at this point. What I was saying about the anti-corruption strategy was that we will seek to provide a substantive update by Report.
I hope the Committee can agree that it would be precipitous to introduce a further “failure to prevent” offence before we properly review this evidence. Similarly, this call for evidence substantively overlaps with Amendment 69F, proposing a new consultation relating to corporate liability for offences of the type referred to in Clause 41. It is right that we wait for the Ministry of Justice to respond to this call for evidence before undertaking a further public consultation that covers the same ground.
Further, the Government introduced corporate criminal offences of failure to prevent bribery, which the noble Baroness, Lady Bowles, referred to, through the Bribery Act 2010, and failure to prevent the facilitation of UK and foreign tax evasion in September through the Criminal Finances Act 2017. Consideration of the introduction of future “failure to prevent” offences should be informed by how those policies operate in practice. While the Bribery Act 2010 has been in force for a number of years, the relevant provisions of the Criminal Finances Act 2017 were commenced only in September of this year, meaning that as yet there is little evidence on how the offences established through that legislation are operating in practice.
I further note that many instances of corporate failures related to anti-money laundering are already captured by existing anti-money laundering legislation. The 2017 money laundering regulations, for example, already impose requirements to prevent money laundering on companies in the regulated sector, such as banks, lawyers and accountancy firms. Breaches of any of those duties by the company are subject to civil or criminal penalties, including fines. For example, firms are required to put and keep in place specific policies, controls and procedures to manage and mitigate effectively the risks of money laundering to their business, including by their clients or customers.
Those regulations, the previous regulations and related rules are well enforced. For example, the Financial Conduct Authority fined Deutsche Bank £163 million in January this year for failing to maintain an adequate anti-money laundering framework, after its investigations revealed that a UK division of the bank had failed to take reasonable care to establish and maintain an effective anti-money laundering control framework.
Further, in 2015 the Financial Conduct Authority fined Barclays Bank £72 million for similar failures in guarding against financial crime, noting that Barclays,
“did not exercise due skill, care and diligence”,
and,
“failed to assess, manage and monitor those risks appropriately”.
These financial penalties substantively demonstrate that effective and proportionate penalties are already applied to UK-regulated firms that fail to put in place proper systems and controls to prevent money laundering.
6.15 pm
I will update that point in the light of the contribution of the noble Lord, Lord Hain. I have discussed with him in this Chamber the shocking revelations that he has brought to the House’s attention. I know that he wrote in some detail to the Chancellor of the Exchequer and that the Chancellor immediately forwarded that on the relevant authorities. It is good to know that the Financial Conduct Authority—which, of course, is at arm’s length from the Government—is in contact with the noble Lord and that the evidence that he has presented to your Lordships’ House today has been handed to it.
However, we should also remind ourselves that between 2010 and 2014 more than 1,100 people were prosecuted for such money laundering offences in each year, and at least 400 people received a custodial sentence in each year. That includes offences in legislation other than the 2007 regulations in force at the time. Law enforcement agencies also believe that money laundering regulations have had a substantial deterrent effect.
One should also say, with regard to the reputation of the City of London, that the UK is proud to have a large and successful financial services industry that is highly regarded around the world because of its rules-based order, its regulation and its systems of governance. London has established a position as the world’s pre-eminent financial centre. Like the financial institutions that operate within it, of course, that is based on a reputation for trust and transparency. It is therefore beholden on us to protect that great part of the UK economy by ever seeking to improve and strengthen areas of transparency and anti-money laundering against those who would seek to undermine its credibility internationally.
I want to mention the important reference made by the noble Baroness, Lady Bowles, to senior managers and internal audit. She referenced a number of companies. The senior managers and certification regime already ensures individual accountability in financial services firms for money laundering. The regime requires senior managers of firms to take reasonable steps to monitor their staff’s conduct in relation to their area of responsibility, one of which is anti-money laundering. If the regulators can prove that they have not taken reasonable steps, they can take enforcement action, including fines and disbarment from undertaking regulated activities. This regime currently applies to senior managers in banks, building societies, credit unions, PRA-designated investment firms and UK branches of foreign banks. Given that the work in this space is already under way, and in order to allow that work time to be properly developed, I therefore ask the noble Baroness to withdraw the amendment at this stage.