Money Laundering: Israeli Settlements and Syria
The question
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to ensure that anti-money laundering supervisory authorities effectively discharge their functions under the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 in relation to commercial activity connected with Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and the occupied Syrian Golan Heights.
Answered by Rachel Blake
The MLRs do not prescribe separate requirements on supervisors in relation to commercial activity involving particular geographic areas or territories. Regulated businesses and firms are required to consider relevant risk factors relating to customers, transactions and the countries and geographical areas in which they operate. Anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing (AML/CTF) supervisors help businesses and firms comply with the Money Laundering Regulations (MLRs), this includes issuing relevant guidance. HM Treasury publishes an annual report on supervision activity using information requested from supervisors.
The Government keeps threats posed by money laundering and terrorist financing under review and works with supervisors, law enforcement agencies and the private sector to identify and address emerging risks. HMT and the Home Office jointly-published the latest National Risk Assessment of money laundering and terrorist financing in 2025. This is used to inform regulated businesses’ own risk assessments, along with supervisors’ risk assessments and other sources of risk information and intelligence.
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