Alternattiva Demokratika today welcomed the revision of the Anti-Money laundering directive at Committee stage in the European Parliament.

In a statement, AD Chairperson, Prof . Arnold Cassola, said: "A public register for companies and trusts will make it more difficult for people like Konrad Mizzi, Keith Schembri and Brian Tonna to open up shelf companies and obscure trusts.  Stronger sanctions are being proposed for violators of this directive as well as more control of the financial intermediaries.  The increased income by the state should serve to better finance the social system and the  health and educational institutions of our country".

Greens/EFA economic and finance spokesperson Sven Giegold said:"This is a very strong signal from the European Parliament in the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism. The position adopted today includes a number of Green ideas and is a strong response to the Panama Papers scandal. The majority of MEPs have rightly backed better control of the middle-men who make these crimes possible. We must put the interests of the public good ahead of those of a small number of big businesses and banks. We are especially pleased to have secured a Green proposal for the introduction of a real estate register showing who owns what land and property in each Member State. Real estate is often misused for money laundering purposes and it is crucial to have public information on who benefits from its ownership."

"In so many of the tax dodging scandals of recent years, poor enforcement has been as much of a problem as poor legislation. Our proposal, backed by the majority today, would grant the European Commission the power to audit Member States' relevant authorities to make sure they are enforcing the rules and to stop further scandals happening."