Fraud and the Justice System
Justice Committee
Closed
Inquiry
This short inquiry sought to examine the ability of the Justice System to effectively prosecute fraud cases. The Committee was particularly interested in how the system is set up to tackle lower-level frauds, that are often not serious enough to be considered by the Serious Fraud Office but have a …
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20
Recommendations
23
Conclusions
1
Report
4
Oral sessions
5
Letters
4
Events
Activity timeline 11 events
9 May
2023
2023
11 Jan
2023
2023
7 Dec
2022
2022
23 Nov
2022
2022
18 Oct
2022
2022
Report published
17 May
2022
2022
10 May
2022
2022
20 Apr
2022
2022
Oral evidence
22 Mar
2022
2022
Oral evidence
15 Mar
2022
2022
Oral evidence
22 Feb
2022
2022
Oral evidence
Oral evidence sessions 4 sessions
20 Apr 2022
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Rt Hon Damian Hinds MP · Ministry of Justice
22 Mar 2022
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Duncan Tessier · Home Office
Katy Worobec · UK Finance
Luke Taylor · Centre for Social Justice (CSJ)
Lulu Freemont · Tech UK
Rt Hon Damian Hinds MP · Home Office
15 Mar 2022
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Mark Fenhalls QC · Bar Council
22 Feb 2022
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Dame Vera Baird · Victims’ Commissioner for England and Wales
Mark Shelford · Avon and Somerset and Economic and Cybercrime Lead of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners
Mike Haley · CIFAS
Rob Jones · National Economic Crime Centre
Temporary Commander Clinton Blackburn · City of London Police’s Economic Crime Directorate
Reports 1 report · click to expand
| Title | HC No. | Published | Items | Response |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fourth Report - Fraud and the Justice System | HC 12 | 18 Oct 2022 | 43 | Response document linked |
Recommendations & Conclusions
43 results
1
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Epidemic of fraud is increasing, accelerating during pandemic, with no reversal in sight.
There is currently an epidemic of fraud in England and Wales. The level of fraud has been increasing year on year and this growth accelerated during the pandemic to an unprecedented level. As the country emerges from the Covid-19 pandemic, …
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Ministry of Justice
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2
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Fraud enforcement and prosecution must adapt to new online technologies.
As the ways in which frauds are being perpetrated change, making increased use of the online sphere and new technologies, the enforcement and prosecution of these crimes also needs to adapt to keep pace with the crimes being conducted.
Ministry of Justice
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3
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Fraud's growing complexity poorly fits current Minister for Security's portfolio.
Fraud is a growing issue and one which does not sit naturally with the other elements of the Minister for Security and Borders extensive portfolio.
Ministry of Justice
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4
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Dedicated Ministerial portfolio crucial for unified, accountable approach to tackling fraud.
Fraud and other forms of economic crime need to sit within a Ministerial portfolio that allows the postholder to prioritise this increasingly important area of work, and who can draw together parts of government and private sector companies to create …
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Ministry of Justice
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5
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Prioritise fraud victim support for most vulnerable; train responders to identify needs.
Fraud crimes do not impact victims equally and due to limitations in victim support capacity, efforts to support victims of fraud should be focused on those who need it most. It is therefore vital that responders to these crimes have …
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Ministry of Justice
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6
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Inconsistent fraud victim support across police forces lacks national standards.
Support available for victims of fraud is patchy and inconsistent. Thirty-seven police forces currently work with victim care units. However this is not compulsory and there is currently no national standard for fraud victim care.
Ministry of Justice
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7
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Set minimum standard of care for fraud victims across all police forces by 2023.
The Government should set a minimum standard of care that a victim of fraud can expect to receive when reporting a crime and ensure that all 43 police forces in England and Wales are working with victim care units to …
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Ministry of Justice
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8
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Victims experience significant difficulty reporting fraud due to unclear processes.
Many victims of fraud find it difficult to know how to report the crime. It needs to be made much clearer to victims how they can report a crime, as the current lack of clarity brings added distress to the …
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Ministry of Justice
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9
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Increase advertising efforts for Action Fraud to raise public reporting awareness.
The Government should increase efforts in advertising Action Fraud to raise public awareness of how to report incidents of fraud.
Ministry of Justice
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10
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Implement immediate steps to improve fraud reporting mechanisms and case progression for victims.
Individual police forces do not have the capacity to manage the volume of fraud reports made and so it is vital that there is an effective reporting service that is victim-focused and can deal consistently with reports and progress cases …
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Ministry of Justice
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11
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Increased Action Fraud call centre staffing remains insufficient for adequate service.
Although the level of staffing at Action Fraud’s reporting call centre has increased from 75 to 95, this is clearly not sufficient to provide an adequate service to all those reporting a fraud.
Ministry of Justice
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12
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Action Fraud and successor services require sufficient staffing to support victims effectively.
Sufficient staffing needs to be put in place to ensure Action Fraud and its successor service can provide a high-quality service to victims, keeping them updated on the progress of their case and directing them to appropriate support services where …
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Ministry of Justice
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13
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Planned Action Fraud replacement focuses on technology, neglecting victim experience improvements.
We welcome the Government’s plans to replace Action Fraud with a new service in 2024; however, we understand from the Government’s evidence to our inquiry that the planned changes are focused on the technology underpinning the service, primarily improving the …
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Ministry of Justice
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14
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Action Fraud's successor must prioritise victim experience with trained support staff.
While we welcome the Government’s commitment to replace Action Fraud with a new service better able to record and disseminate information about a crime, the service also needs to focus on victim experience, ensuring there are trained individuals staffing Action …
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Ministry of Justice
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15
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Introduce legislative changes to allow flexible compensation order value adjustments for victims.
The Government should introduce changes to compensation order legislation to allow for flexibility in altering the order value if a criminal is later found to have assets of greater value which can be used to compensate victims of their crimes. …
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Ministry of Justice
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16
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Preventing fraud should be paramount, alongside maximising asset recovery for victims.
We are wary of placing too great an emphasis on the compensation of victims. We do not want to give criminals carte blanche to commit their crimes just because victims can be reimbursed, since their crimes will continue to have …
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Ministry of Justice
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17
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Multiple police command chains for fraud cases create confusion and pass responsibility.
Within policing, there are various chains of command when it comes to tackling fraud cases, with investigations being conducted at a local level but with central bodies, namely the City of London Police and the National Economic Crime Centre, having …
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Ministry of Justice
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18
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Ensure agreements define fraud responsibilities and support between police forces and central bodies.
The Government should ensure agreements are in place between the City of London Police, the National Economic Crime Centre, and local police forces to outline responsibilities in relation to fraud and also highlight the support available to local forces working …
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Ministry of Justice
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19
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Fraud lacks police investigative priority due to absence of performance accountability data.
Fraud is not an investigative priority for police forces, partly because it is not a crime type for which forces are held accountable for their performance. Fraud statistics are not included in local and regional performance data despite most of …
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Ministry of Justice
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20
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Fraud currently lacks Strategic Policing Requirement status and comprehensive performance data publication.
Fraud should be made a Strategic Policing Requirement to focus effort and resources on combatting this crime type. Additionally, performance data should be collected, monitored, and published at local and regional levels, as is done for other crime types, to …
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Ministry of Justice
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21
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Fraud receives disproportionately low police funding and officer allocation despite prevalence.
Fraud accounts for more than 40% of all crime yet receives only around 2% of police funding. Out of the 20,000 new police officers being recruited, only 380 are planned to be deployed in the response to fraud. If the …
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Ministry of Justice
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22
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Government funding and police resourcing for fraud response remain insufficient.
The Government needs to put in place sufficient funding and police resourcing to bring about a step-change in the response to fraud.
Ministry of Justice
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23
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Police training inadequately addresses technology-exploiting fraud crimes and evolving offending methods.
Fraud crimes can be easy to spot in many cases if a police officer has adequate awareness of technological developments, but can be missed in the absence of such knowledge. The training of police remains focused on more traditional crime …
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Ministry of Justice
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24
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Police training needs review to reflect evolving technology-exploiting crime landscape.
The College of Policing should conduct a review of the training offered to front- line staff to ensure it reflects the changing crime landscape and provides a strong foundation in crimes that exploit technology such as fraud. (Paragraph 88) 40 …
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Ministry of Justice
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25
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Dedicated economic crime courts would address complex fraud cases and backlog.
We have heard compelling proposals for dedicated economic crime courts to ensure there are judges with the right skills to oversee what can often be lengthy and sometimes complex cases. This would also help address the backlog in fraud cases, …
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Ministry of Justice
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26
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Pilot establishment of dedicated economic crime courts in collaboration with the Judiciary.
The Government should work with the Judiciary to pilot the establishment of economic crime courts. If the pilots are successful, these types of court should be established around the country to reflect the geographic diversity in the crimes being perpetrated.
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Ministry of Justice
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27
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Application of disclosure rules is problematic in digital fraud cases, requiring clearer guidelines.
Our inquiry heard of problems with the application of disclosure rules which can result in significant amounts of police and prosecution time being spent redacting and disclosing vast amounts of material that turns out to be unnecessary to the case …
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Ministry of Justice
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28
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Review current disclosure guidelines to introduce specific guidance for digital fraud cases.
The Attorney General should review the current disclosure guidelines and consider whether there is merit in introducing specific guidance on disclosure in fraud cases with large quantities of digital material.
Ministry of Justice
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29
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Early engagement between police, prosecution, and defence is beneficial, hindered by legal aid.
Greater engagement between the police, prosecution and defence has been highlighted as best practice for determining the scope of prosecutions and helping conclude cases in a timely manner. A key barrier to this engagement has been the lack of legal …
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Ministry of Justice
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30
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Current sentencing guidelines inadequately address emotional and psychological impact of fraud crimes.
The loss of a comparatively small amount of money can have a greater impact on one individual than the loss of a greater amount on another. The current sentencing guidelines do not recognise this and therefore overlook the emotional and …
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Ministry of Justice
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31
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Sentencing guidelines require amendment to consider emotional and psychological harms of fraud.
Sentencing guidelines should be amended to give greater consideration to the emotional and psychological harms caused by fraud crimes alongside the financial losses incurred. (Paragraph 122) Disrupting and preventing fraud
Ministry of Justice
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32
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Effective fraud prevention requires robust public and private sector cooperation.
Our inquiry has repeatedly heard that the most effective way to tackle fraud is to prevent it occurring in the first place. This requires co-operation across the private and public sectors, with the Government using its convening power to unite …
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Ministry of Justice
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33
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Upcoming Fraud Action Plan needs clear roles for public and private sectors.
Government should continue to bring together the public and private sectors and ensure that the upcoming Fraud Action Plan sets out its ambition for tackling fraud, how this will be achieved, and the roles and responsibilities each industry has within …
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Ministry of Justice
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34
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Tech and telecom companies show insufficient engagement preventing fraud on their platforms.
We acknowledge that telecommunications and tech companies are taking steps to improve their response to fraud, however they remain platforms through which the majority of frauds impacting the general public are conducted. There still appears to be a lack of …
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Ministry of Justice
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35
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Tech and social media companies play vital role in designing fraud out of systems.
Tech and social media companies have a vital role to play in designing fraud out of their systems to help prevent so many frauds from being conducted online.
Ministry of Justice
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36
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Establish charters with social media and tech companies to ensure fraud accountability.
The Government should prioritise putting in place charters with the social media and tech companies to capture their commitments and responsibilities in relation to tackling fraud, and to enable them to be held to account by government for their progress …
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Ministry of Justice
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37
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Failure to prevent fraud' offence could improve corporate behaviour and prevention efforts.
The ‘failure to prevent’ offence for bribery has had success in driving better corporate behaviours. A similar offence for failure to prevent fraud being perpetrated using a company’s platforms would not only aid prosecution for these failures but focus private …
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Ministry of Justice
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38
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
A 'failure to prevent fraud' offence could hold companies accountable for platform fraud.
A failure to prevent fraud offence should be introduced to hold companies to account for fraud occurring on their systems and encourage better corporate behaviours.
Ministry of Justice
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39
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Concern exists regarding perceived GDPR restrictions on data sharing for fraud prevention.
We are concerned to hear that there is a perception that legislation such as GDPR is preventing the sharing of information and intelligence across sectors where frauds were suspected. Data-sharing laws should not restrict the sharing of information for law …
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Ministry of Justice
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40
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Provide update and proposals to broaden data sharing for effective fraud combatting.
The Government should provide an update of its review of the legislation in respect of the sharing of data with a Specified Anti-Fraud Organisation. The Government should also look more broadly at the operation of data-sharing legislation with regard to …
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Ministry of Justice
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41
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Online Safety Bill offers crucial opportunity to strengthen fraud prevention on platforms.
We welcome the opportunity the Online Safety Bill presents to require companies to do more to prevent frauds from being perpetrated on their platforms, and to strengthen the obligations of companies to ensure the safety of their online users.
Ministry of Justice
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42
Conclusion
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Current fraud prevention campaigns lack sufficient resources to effectively raise public awareness.
Key to the prevention of fraud is increasing public awareness of these crimes and the steps people can take to avoid being victimised. Although campaigns are currently run by the Financial Conduct Authority and its partners, these do not have …
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Ministry of Justice
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43
Recommendation
Fourth Report - Fraud and the Just…
Plan a national awareness campaign to raise public awareness of fraud prevention measures.
The Government should plan a national awareness campaign as part of the new Fraud Action Plan, to raise public awareness of fraud and the personal actions people can take to reduce their chances of falling victim to such crimes. (Paragraph …
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Ministry of Justice
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Correspondence 5 letters
9 May 2023
To committee
Letter from Rt Hon Tom Tugendhat MBE VR MP, Security Minister, dated 3 May 2023, on the publication of the Government’s Fraud Strategy
Parliament page
7 Dec 2022
From committee
Letter to the Chairman of the Sentencing Council, dated 30 November 2022, on the Committee's report on Fraud and the Justice System
Parliament page
23 Nov 2022
To committee
Letter from the Sentencing Council, dated 14 November 2022, on the Committe's report on Fraud and the Justice System
Parliament page
17 May 2022
To committee
Letter from Damian Hinds MP, Minister for Security and Borders, dated 10 May 2022, on oral evidence follow up
Parliament page
10 May 2022
From committee
Letter to Rt Hon Damian Hinds MP, Minister for Security and Borders, dated 28 April 2022, following oral evidence on fraud inquiry
Parliament page