A public register of companies will become the international standard - and the Isle of Man should the lead the way.

That’s the view of MPs Dame Margaret Hodge and Andrew Mitchell, who visited the island this week to press the case for more openness about the real owners of Manx-registered companies.

Currently, our central register of beneficial ownership is accessible only to law enforcement and tax officials.

The Manx government’s view is that the system works well and a public register should be only be brought in if it applies to everyone as a global standard.

In April Labour MP Dame Margaret Hodge added an amendment to the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Bill in the House of Commons. It called for a public register of beneficial ownership to become mandatory in the Crown Dependencies and overseas territories.

MPs stopped short of imposing that on the Crown Dependencies (the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands) but did so on the overseas territories, such as Bermuda and the British Virgin Islands.

The suggestion that Westminster could impose its will on the island, over Tynwald’s head, raised serious constitutional questions.

After this visit this week, Mr Mitchell, Tory MP for Sutton Coldfield, told the Manx Independent: ’The argument that a closed register will suffice had been blown out of the water and no longer remains the case. We made the point that a public register was going to become the international standard in due course in order to eradicate dirty money internationally.

’There would be great merit in the Isle of Man embracing its now, and becoming an early voluntary leader.’

Chief Minister Howard Quayle hosted the visit by Mr Mitchell and Dame Margaret which was the first time either MP had been to the island.

During their trip they met Ministers and regulators and were even given a tour of the island by the Chief Minister.

Mr Mitchell said: ’It was an extremely good visit. We were enormously impressed by everything we saw, in particular the high quality of the civil administration and the strength of the budgetary arrangements and the beauty of the landscape.

Mr Mitchell added: ’The main purpose was to engage with the Chief Minister and his colleagues on the recent decision by the British Parliament to introduce open registers in the Overseas Territories and our belief the Crown Dependencies should seriously consider introducing a similar regime.

Mr Quayle said that when a public register became the international standard then the island would comply.

Doing so first might put the island at a competitive disadvantage.