against money laundering, the Island is under pressure to draw up plans to boost procedures. Cathy Stovell reports.

Britain has set a January deadline for action on recommendations in the just-released KPMG Report.

British Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Melanie Johnston, has announced that she expects a specific timetable of action by January 15 2001.

The report commissioned by the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office was released last Friday and contained several recommendations on how Bermuda's financial regulations could be strengthened.

The commission, in addition to Bermuda, included all Caribbean Overseas Territories.

While welcoming the Bermuda section of the report both the Bermuda Government and the business community were in agreement that it held no surprises. In fact many of the locals involved said the KPMG recommendations coincided with those they had shown the reviewers at the start of the probe.

Premier Jennifer Smith and Finance Minister, Eugene Cox, have said Bermuda would not be bullied into implementing recommendations that did not suit its specialist environment.

But according to a Press release from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Mr.

Cox agreed, along with the other overseas territories involved in the probe, to "publish by January 15 2001 a response to the recommendations addressed to it, together with a timetable for action''.

Also agreed was that "following appropriate consultation and parliamentary approval within each Overseas Territory, the core recommendations relating to independent regulatory authorities, anti-money laundering regimes and exchange of information would be substantially implemented by September 30 2001''. The report handed down a very favourable review of Bermuda's financial regulations with real concern only shown in the area of the Trust Act which the Bermuda Monetary Authority had already planned to address.

In March 1999 the UK Government White Paper "Partnership for Progress and Prosperity: Britain and Overseas Territories'' was presented to the UK Parliament. The White Paper recognised the significant role that the international financial services industry played in the Caribbean Overseas Territories and Bermuda, and emphasised the importance of the Overseas Territories meeting accepted international standards for the regulation of financial services.

To assess the existing levels of regulation within the Overseas Territories an in-depth independent review was commissioned and conducted by KPMG.