19. Understands that increased inspections might also have the additional benefit of removing those businesses, or front companies, that were created by criminals only to facilitate their fraud; notes that up-to-date information on dispatch and receipt of excise goods is confirmed under the EMCS by business actors themselves; asks the Commission to take initiative in tightening the access rights of the EMCS to include a comprehensive history of compliance before trading so that it is possible to grant business actors the status of ‘empowered economic operator’ (’trusted business actors’) so that only these actors could operate under EM ...[+++]CS directly by themselves; asks the Commission to present the results of current investigations concerning the need to amend Directive 2008/118/EC;

19. Understands that increased inspections might also have the additional benefit of removing those businesses, or front companies, that were created by criminals only to facilitate their fraud; notes that up-to-date information on dispatch and receipt of excise goods is confirmed under the EMCS by business actors themselves; asks the Commission to take initiative in tightening the access rights of the EMCS to include a comprehensive history of compliance before trading so that it is possible to grant business actors the status of ‘empowered economic operator’ (‘trusted business actors’) so that only these actors could operate under EM ...[+++]CS directly by themselves; asks the Commission to present the results of current investigations concerning the need to amend Directive 2008/118/EC;

8. Stresses that the European Union needs to step up efforts to strengthen the principles of eGovernment which would set the conditions for greater transparency in public finances; draws attention to the fact that electronic transactions, unlike cash transactions, are referenced and it therefore becomes more difficult to commit fraud and easier to identify suspected cases of fraud; encourages Member States to lower their thresholds for mandatory payments other than cash;

In the case of a company that begins systematically defrauding its clients, as Vincent Lacroix's companies did, when some people begin to suspect that activities or money collected for clients are being used to defraud people, they cannot use the excuse that they did not know because, in fact, they had suspicions but may not have wanted to ask any questions.

We in Canada unfortunately still have the idea that defrauding the government is not at all the same thing as defrauding a person.

In case law, that is a very significant aggravating factor and it would send the clear message that defrauding the government is fraud, stealing is stealing, even if it involves public money.