 Mr. Speaker, the bill amends the money laundering prevention act cap 1220 which consolidates the law governing money laundering and related matters, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, these days we hear quite a bit of discussion on money laundering, on financial crime, et cetera, Mr. Speaker. And on many of the situations, Mr. Speaker, our islands are, the plain field is not level, Mr. Speaker. It's not level at all in that what we are called to do sometimes are rich and better and bigger neighbors in the north, Mr. Speaker, not have to follow the same stringent laws, Mr. Speaker. But, Mr. Speaker, as they say, when you're small, you say in Patua, you are wavet du vapul. So, since you are wavet du vapul, Mr. Speaker, you must follow all the rules, you must follow all the regulations, Mr. Speaker. If not, you are going to get blacklisted. If not, you're going to be put on all kinds of lists, green lists, black lists, all kinds of lists, Mr. Speaker. And your whole financial infrastructure is going to be damaged. In fact, Mr. Speaker, one of the biggest threats that faces the small islands is the threat of the risk scheme, where we will not be able, if we do not follow all these rules and regulations, we will not be able to use the international check clearing system. And that would mean our whole enterprise, it means you will not be able to use your credit cards. It means you will not be able to send money through the SWIFT system if we do not ensure that all these rules and regulations that is set for us, we meet them, Mr. Speaker. Sometimes at great costs, sometimes at great expense, and sometimes at great inconvenience, Mr. Speaker, because as we speak about this bill, it's so difficult for the boy to open a bank account in Saint Lucia, Mr. Speaker. The banks, because of the fear of the risk scheme, they ask for so many, so many steps before bank account can be opened, Mr. Speaker. And young people, regular people cannot, they suffer because it's very difficult to open a bank account in Saint Lucia because the banks fear the risk scheme and because of all the money laundering situations that may exist, Mr. Speaker. So this bill, Mr. Speaker, this amendment to this bill is for us to meet the request or the financial action task force, Mr. Speaker. The financial action task force is an intergovernmental body that sets international standards that aim to prevent money laundering, terrorist financing, financing other criminal conduct, Mr. Speaker. The financial action task force reviews money laundering and terrorist financing techniques and continuously strengthens the standards to adjust new risks. As such recommendations, the FATF promotes a coordinated global response to prevent activities that threaten the integrity of the international financial system, Mr. Speaker. And Saint Lucia is a member of the Caribbean, the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force, which is an organization of states and territories of the Caribbean basin that promotes the implementation of the financial action task force, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in Saint Lucia, the National and the Money Laundering Oversight Committee, which is called NAMLOC, which comprises the Tony General's chambers, the Financial Intelligence Authority, the Authority and other stakeholders manages Caribbean financial action task force reviews and matters, and is responsible for coordinating national and anti-money laundering and counterterrorism financing activities. The CFATF in collaboration with other stakeholders, including NAMLOC, undertook an assessment to determine the degree to which Saint Lucia complied to FATF recommendations, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, and after this evaluation, Mr. Speaker, it shows that there are some deficiencies and there's a lack of specific provisions regarding the treatment of a person's own proceeds of criminal conduct, self-wondering, and verifying customer identity. As a result, the Money Laundering Prevention Amendment Act of number 16 of 2021 was passed to address these deficiencies. However, Mr. Speaker, in a continuing effort to satisfy the recommendations, and particularly the deficiencies that are highlighted above, the authorities submitted instructions for further amendments to the Act by Memoranda 9th and 4th of February 2023 and 6th and 4th of January 2023 and 9th of December 2022 and 4th of November 2022 and 22nd of June 2022. And these are the recommendations that these are the amendments, the amendments we are making today, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Bill amends the Act to modify existing definitions and introduce new definitions for terms used in the Bill. The Bill also substitutes the definition of applicant for business to correct a spelling error. The Act is amended by the Bill to address the adequacy of the sanctions. As a result, the Bill increases the penalty for a financial institution or person engaged in early bills activity which fails to comply with a direction given under the Act. Further, the Bill also increases the penalty of a financial institution that fails to comply with specific sections of the Act. So, you see, Mr. Speaker, that is why the banks are creating so much difficulty for people if they want to do, when they want to do some of the legitimate business, Mr. Speaker. The Bill strengthens the customer identity measures under the Act by requiring verification of customer identity for transactions of less than 10,000 United States dollars or its Caribbean dollar equivalent. I mean, Mr. Speaker, I want to make that clear. The Act says that once you are depositing less than 10,000 U.S. dollars, the bank should accept it, Mr. Speaker. 10,000 U.S. dollars, that is the law. The banks cannot be masters of creating their own laws, Mr. Speaker, to further put pressure on local people, Mr. Speaker. 10,000 U.S. dollars or 27,000 U.S. dollars, Mr. Speaker, can be deposited in the bank without any identity or without any source of funds, Mr. Speaker. That is what the law says. The law says so. The law also serves to protect the banks, Mr. Speaker, but the law must be observed. The Bill extends the scope of responsibility of financial institutions and the person engaged in the business activity, Mr. Speaker, under the Act to reporting a suspicious transaction or attempted suspicious transaction within the terrorist financing and profiling financial institutions, Mr. Speaker. For the meeting, the scope of the Act is extended in the Bill to the Immersion Area of Virtual Asset Business, which is recognized globally and for the enactment of the Virtual Asset Business Act No. 24 of 2022 as an area that is susceptible to money laundering. As a result, a Virtual Asset Business is required to conduct customer due diligence with respect to certain specified financial transactions, Mr. Speaker. For the mitigation of risks, the Bill amends the Act to require that a financial institution or person engaged in early business activity must undertake additional measures with respect to politically exposed persons. And that's we inside it, Mr. Speaker. We inside it. We are called politically exposed persons, PEP. And, Mr. Speaker, you know we and our spouses, Mr. Speaker. You know, sometimes you're going to put five dollars in the bank. That's where you get five dollars from. Mr. Speaker, it is sometimes I know why people don't get involved in politics because you led your life all the time. You made your money. You went in your business business. But all of a sudden, because you go for elections, you become a PEP. Not a PEP. A politically exposed person, Mr. Speaker. And if you want to get a loan, you are scrutinized. If you want to, anything you do, you are scrutinized. Plus the fact you have to deal with propaganda lies from the opposition. Plus the fact, Mr. Speaker. So, but that is the law and that is the law. That is how we have to follow, Mr. Speaker. So, there are further measures to deal with what they call politically exposed persons, Mr. Speaker. The Bill and Men's Act specifically address the matter of self-laundering. As a result, a person is prohibited from handling property, from handling property, representing his or criminal conduct, Mr. Speaker. Yes, we got a Bill and Men's Act to empower the authority to provide mutual legal assistance with respect to terrorist financing and profilation financing. The Bill and Men's Act to provide that the authorities exempt from the payment of taxes, et cetera, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, this is the amendments to the bill that we are proposing, Mr. Speaker, all to avoid seduction from being blacklisted, Mr. Speaker, to avoid our banks, to help avoid our banks from being, from experiencing the risk, Mr. Speaker. And whereas we know, we know that the playing field is not level, Mr. Speaker. As I said before, we are our very duval pool. We are our very duval pool. And these organizations, these bodies, they want more and more from us every step of the way, Mr. Speaker. And every time we try to liberate ourselves by doing something that will give us some level of income, some level of revenue, Mr. Speaker, they are blocking, they are blocking, Mr. Speaker. In the Citizens by Investment Program, they are major, major, all, we've said to all of the country, come and see what we're doing. Come and see what we're doing, Mr. Speaker. But the problem is arising, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, we are trying, we will comply with all the regulations, we will comply with all the amendments that are required, Mr. Speaker, because we want to protect our financial system, we want to protect our payment system, Mr. Speaker, so we will comply. But I urge the banks to find ways and means, Mr. Speaker, of making it easier for the customers, particularly when it comes to the setting up of accounts, Mr. Speaker, who want to open account. It is too difficult in this environment, Mr. Speaker. And also, on that same note, Mr. Speaker, I want to say to the people of St. Lucia, these restrictions that seem to be imposed upon them are not of our own doing. We have to follow international financial architecture. If not, we are going to be blacklisted and our whole financial system may collapse. And that is happening in the region. This is not new. This may happen. It is happening in some countries in the region that we remain unnamed, Mr. Speaker. There is a certain country in the region where its whole payment system collapses one day. If it is closed, the whole payment system, and for the country to meet its debts, money has to be put in a helicopter and brought up over to the United States to pay the debts, Mr. Speaker, because the payment system was disrupted. For Mr. Speaker, I urge members to support this amendment, Mr. Speaker, because it is basically to keep us in the financial, international financial architecture. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.