Gibraltar House in Brussels hosted a board meeting of the European Small Business Association (ESBA). The Gibraltar Federation of Small Businesses was a founding member of ESBA, and currently participates in it as a Board member. ESBA has its headquarters in the city and represents over one million small and medium-sized enterprises and self-employed people from 35 countries.
The Argentine court order that assets of several international oil companies drilling for oil in the Falkland Islands be seized has caused mild turbulence in their share prices. Tierra del Fuego judge Lilian Herraez ordered the authorities to seize bank accounts, boats and other assets worth an estimated US$156mln.
“Argentine courts have no jurisdiction in the Falkland Islands”, said Falklands' lawmaker Mike Summers early Monday in response to the latest Argentine attempt into bullying the Islands and derailing its economy.
Fourteen Caribbean countries are among 30 territories blacklisted by the European Union (EU) as the world’s worst tax havens. The list published by the EU on Wednesday includes Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, St. Kitts and Nevis, and the British Overseas Territories of Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Montserrat, and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
The Falkland Islands are very pleased with their current political and democratic status based on the UN charter and confirmed in the 2013 referendum, enjoy a prosperous economy with emphasis on social policies and environment conservation and have good neighborly relations with nearby countries, except for Argentina that “continues to ignore our people's right to self-determination and covet our territory”.
Argentina dispatched on Monday complaint letters to several international and regional organizations accusing the United Kingdom of further militarizing the Falklands/Malvinas, with an increased budget, alleging Argentina represents a 'live threat' to the Islanders in the British Overseas Territory and thus ignoring tens of resolutions calling for dialogue between the two sides on the Falklands issue.
British territories including Gibraltar are being used by criminals and foreign officials to launder ‘corrupt’ money through the purchase of up market UK properties, according to the respected anti-corruption organization Transparency International.
The annual Overseas Territories Joint Ministerial Council (JMC) which brings together political leaders from the Overseas Territories and UK ministers took off on Monday in London, hosted by FCO Minister for the Overseas Territories James Duddridge MP.