BASETTERRE, St. Kitts (AP) -- St. Kitts Prime Minister Denzil Douglas said a "sinister plot'' was partially to blame for criticism that Caribbean nations are not doing enough to stop money laundering.

Douglas's comments on Saturday came one day after legislators in the Cayman Islands passed four laws aimed at limiting bank secrecy and getting off the list of countries "not cooperating'' with anti-money laundering efforts.

The Cayman Islands and St. Kitts and Nevis were among 15 countries singled out this week for additional scrutiny in an advisory issued by the US Treasury Department. The same nations were listed last month by the G-7 organisation of industrialised nations as "not cooperating'' with efforts to stop money laundering. Bermuda is not on either list.

Douglas said another motive for the criticism of small countries with active offshore banking industries is the fear of losing wealth, not just money laundering.

"There is no question that it is an attempt to destabilise the various economies that are dependent on the financial services sector,'' Douglas said.

Byron Blake, deputy secretary-general of the regional Caricom organisation, said the criticism was one-sided.

"They say you have the responsibility to see that money does not come to your jurisdiction but they didn't say they had the responsibility to see that it didn't leave their jurisdiction,'' Blake said.

Late on Friday, the Cayman Islands Legislative Assembly passed four laws that expanded the Monetary Authority's ability to release information on banking clients to foreign investigators.

Financial Secretary George McCarthy said the laws also contained safeguards, however, that would prevent "fishing expeditions'' by other countries.

BUSINESS BUC