The Finance Minister said proposed legislation for this country's compliance with the Financial Action Task Force will give police the required legal protection for covert operations against drug traffickers and money launders.
But an Opposition MP challenged the Minister's declaration that the bills will ensure that for the first time the Board of Inland Revenue would operate "more like a law enforcement agency."
00:00In the House of Representatives, Finance Minister Devendranath Tanku piloted the 2025 Miscellaneous Provisions FATF Compliance Bill 2025 and the Counterproliferation Financing Bill 2025.
00:13Mr. Speaker, these bills are not simply a compliance exercise. It is a national security imperative, an economic safeguard and a statement of our values. By passing them, we affirm that Trinidad and Tobago will not be a haven for dirty money.
00:31Reading from a prepared statement, Minister Tanku spoke further about the national security element of the proposed legislation.
00:38Law enforcement can now conduct covert operations against drug cartels, terrorist financiers, arms traffickers and money launderers with an assurance that resulting evidence will be admissible in court.
00:54Finance Minister Tanku also spoke about intended expanded powers for the Board of Inland Revenue.
01:00For the first time, and may I repeat, for the first time, the BIR will have explicit statutory authority to investigate tax-related offenses rather than being confined to its traditional rule of assessing returns and collecting revenue.
01:15In essence, then, Mr. Speaker, tax evaders and those using tax structures to launder money and finance terrorism will now face greater risk of detection and prosecution as the BIR will operate more like a law enforcement body in financial crime matters.
01:34Opposition MP and former finance minister, Colm Inbut, said while the opposition welcomes an improvement in the BIR, he directed the government to the finance ministry's website.
01:47Within the Board of Inland Revenue, there is a unit called the Criminal Tax Investigation Unit.
01:55It has powers to investigate, it has powers to investigate, and it has powers to lay charges with respect to breaches of our tax laws.
02:05And if you go further onto the Inland Revenue website, go there, you'll see it.
02:12They give you examples.
02:14West Mooring's businessman accused of defrauding BIR, attorney charged for cheating the public revenue and uttering a false document.
02:22M.P. Inbut said the 2025 Miscellaneous Provisions Fatif Compliance Bill alone would amend 565 clauses and sub-clauses in various pieces of existing legislation.
02:36This bill is not just going to create problems for people who support the PNM.
02:41It is going to create serious problems for people that support the UNC.
02:45So you need to be careful.
02:49You need to consult.
02:51You need to bring in experts.
02:53If you're relying just on the technocrats, mistakes will be made.
02:59So that is why I'm asking for a joint sealer committee, and I'm asking for it to report before December,
03:04and I give you the assurance, everyone in this House, that we on this side will cooperate fully.
03:09Legal Affairs Minister Saddam Hussein spoke about the Fatif bills during the former PNM administration.
03:14Bills came to this House, Mr. Speaker, a few days' notice.
03:21We didn't complain as the opposition.
03:23We got down to the work, examined the bills, made recommendations, submitted amendments, Mr. Speaker.
03:29We didn't complain.
03:30But there's a laziness on that side, Mr. Speaker, that they are only complaining.
03:35Where was their public consultations on the Fatif bills that they brought?
03:38There was absolutely none, Mr. Speaker.
03:40None.
03:41Opposition MP and Senior Counsel Keith Scotland later reiterated the opposition's call for the government's 2025 bills
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