CARICOM up in arms against EU’s decision to blacklist Member States 

The Caribbean Community (CARICOM), on Friday, denounced moves by the European Union (EU) to blacklist Member States deemed to be non-cooperative tax jurisdictions.

“The Caribbean Community calls upon the European Union to desist from this harmful practice of blacklisting small states, and instead pursue a mutually collaborative engagement towards our shared goals of effective tax governance and combatting money laundering and terrorism financing, the Regional Bloc said.

In a statement, the Regional Bloc said the unilateral, arbitrary and non-transparent blacklisting strategy employed by the EU cannot be condoned. The missive comes days after the EU took a decision to blacklist Barbados. Trinidad and Tobago is also currently on the list.

“The most recent inclusion of CARICOM States to the blacklist of alleged non-cooperative tax jurisdictions and jurisdictions identified as being deficient in the area of Anti-Money Laundering/Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT), underscores the EU’s unwillingness to take into account the substantial progress made by CARICOM Member States at compliance with global standards,” the CARICOM said.

According to the regional body, the EU did not engage the affected CARICOM Member States in meaningful consultation before making such radical decision. Such a decision, it warned negates the spirit of partnership and multilateralism that has characterised the relationship between CARICOM and the EU. “Along with the unprecedented task of staging a post-COVID-19 economic recovery, these CARICOM States now have the added burden of being subjected to the EU’s discriminatory tactics disguised as tax policy and governance,” CARICOM said.

It was explained that Blacklisting severely affects the economic prospects of the listed states and the Community, in general, “This labelling causes significant reputational risk, erodes our competitive advantage, and discourages the investment that CARICOM States desperately need to drive inclusive growth and build economic resilience,” he further explained. Since January, 2018, Guyana was removed from EU’s blacklist.