Pulling the Plug on Money Laundering in British Columbia, Canada: lessons learned, and actions required

While Canada has never been immune to money laundering, something began to change in 2015 when vast amounts of dirty money started to surface in British Columbia's casinos. Two reports released by the provincial government in early May 2019 revealed that more than $7 billion had been laundered in British Columbia in 2018, including an estimated $5.3 billion through the real estate market. In response to these reports a public inquiry was convened to examine the full scope of money laundering in the province. In this essay, the author draws on his experience as a Canadian Member of Parliament, a former parliamentary secretary to Canada’s Minister of Finance and an active leader with the Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption (GOPAC) to examine how Canada arrived at this point and what can be done to turn the tid