Federal parties pledge action on money laundering, a likely election issue in B.C.
Credit to Author: Gordon Hoekstra| Date: Fri, 13 Sep 2019 01:21:31 +0000
Even in B.C.’s far North, money laundering is getting attention as the federal election gears up.
Bob Zimmer, the Conservative incumbent for Peace River-Northern Rockies, whose more regular concerns for his constituents in B.C.’s natural gas-producing region would be energy and climate policies, took a swipe at Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau’s government for its progress on combating money laundering.
On a weekly post on a Fort St. John news website before the election that started Wednesday, Zimmer said there has been little action on promises made this spring to combat money laundering.
“This is yet another example of Justin Trudeau being #notasadvertised,” wrote Zimmer.
“We take money laundering and other white-collar crimes seriously and believe British Columbians deserve answers. It is clear that the status quo cannot continue,” he said of the party’s position.
Money laundering is likely to be an election issue in B.C., where a government-commissioned study concluded as much as $7 billion was laundered in the province in 2018 and much of that in housing. But whether the issue will spill over to other parts of the country remains an open question.
Pollster Mario Canseco said he thinks there is a deeper connection to the issue in B.C. In Ontario, for example, they have not necessarily made a connection to money laundering and increased housing prices, violence and drugs, he said.
It could become a national talking point if some major money-laundering incident erupted during the campaign, said Canseco, who is the president of Vancouver-based Research Co. “But if nothing happens, it’s not likely to be a No. 1 issue nationally.”
Following extensive media coverage, including several Postmedia investigations on money laundering since 2017, the Trudeau government announced in March it would spend nearly $70 million over five years to help fight money laundering.
That included money to create a money-laundering task force, increase expertise and support financial intelligence gathering. Another $68.9 million over the next five years was earmarked to strengthen policing capacity.
The Liberals also brought in Criminal Code changes to lower the prosecution threshold to prove money laundering.
But little spending has happened yet.
B.C. Attorney General David Eby said recently he has seen no funding or progress from the Trudeau government on the file.
A database created by Postmedia to track progress of money laundering recommendations generated by federal and provincial reports shows that only four of 49 recommendations that are the responsibility of Ottawa have been completed.
Trudeau has said the billions laundered in B.C. and other provinces in Canada is “alarming” and “unacceptable.” At a recent stopover in B.C. he said promised money-laundering funding would be delivered, however, he would not say when.
The New Westminster-Burnaby NDP incumbent, Peter Julian, who sat on the Commons finance committee that produced anti-money laundering recommendations in 2018, said the Trudeau government has not taken substantive action. Rather, he charged, it is simply making announcements designed to make the public believe they are doing something.
Julian said what is needed as a minimum starting point is a public registry that shows the true ownership of properties and companies, so the players cannot be hidden; and proper funding for law enforcement, which would have to be substantive.
“Money laundering undermines trust in our institutions, increases perception that illegal activity is encouraged rather than sanctioned and increases costs to law-abiding families,” he said.
The Green party’s platform also calls for a crack down on money laundering, and organized and white-collar crime. The party suggests a securities crime unit is needed in the RCMP and more resources for investigations and legal teams to produce effective and timely prosecutions.
James Cohen, executive director of the Canadian division of Transparency International, a global anticorruption advocacy organization, said he hopes that money laundering is an election issue.
“I think it should matter to all parties … and I think people should be concerned across Canada and want to hear candidates address the issue,” said Cohen.
And while he said he had not heard anything on how the Liberals promised money laundering funding would be implemented, he wants to see whoever forms government continue to increase resources and tools to combat money laundering.
Money laundering has been under a the spotlight in B.C., a result of revelations uncovered in a Postmedia investigation in 2017 that found potentially millions of dollars were being laundered through Lower Mainland casinos.
A separate Postmedia investigation, published in February, found that money-laundering prosecutions were rare and difficult in B.C.