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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
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| Government 'failing' over fraud | Government 'failing' over fraud |
| (6 days later) | |
| The government is not taking fraud seriously enough even though it is costing the country £16bn a year, an influential lobby group has warned. | The government is not taking fraud seriously enough even though it is costing the country £16bn a year, an influential lobby group has warned. |
| The Fraud Advisory Panel has urged ministers to create a dedicated police force to spearhead anti-fraud efforts. | The Fraud Advisory Panel has urged ministers to create a dedicated police force to spearhead anti-fraud efforts. |
| A government review has recommended giving police extra resources but there are growing concerns that sufficient funding will not be made available. | A government review has recommended giving police extra resources but there are growing concerns that sufficient funding will not be made available. |
| The Home Office said recent initiatives showed it took fraud "very seriously". | The Home Office said recent initiatives showed it took fraud "very seriously". |
| Police priorities | Police priorities |
| The Fraud Advisory Panel, an independent body set up in 1998 to highlight the scale of fraud in the UK, said the status quo in fraud strategy was not acceptable and radical changes were needed. | The Fraud Advisory Panel, an independent body set up in 1998 to highlight the scale of fraud in the UK, said the status quo in fraud strategy was not acceptable and radical changes were needed. |
| It said too many fraud cases were not being investigated and that the number of dedicated fraud officers in British police forces had fallen by nearly 40% over the past six years. | It said too many fraud cases were not being investigated and that the number of dedicated fraud officers in British police forces had fallen by nearly 40% over the past six years. |
| The Home Office and the Treasury refuse to make fighting financial crime a priority Rosalind Wright, Fraud Advisory Panel | The Home Office and the Treasury refuse to make fighting financial crime a priority Rosalind Wright, Fraud Advisory Panel |
| Ministers launched a review of anti-fraud strategy last year to look at ways of reducing financial crime and its damage to the economy. | Ministers launched a review of anti-fraud strategy last year to look at ways of reducing financial crime and its damage to the economy. |
| The review - now the subject of a public consultation - concluded that fraud was not a police priority at a national level. | The review - now the subject of a public consultation - concluded that fraud was not a police priority at a national level. |
| It recommended creating a new statutory body to spearhead the fight against white-collar crime. | It recommended creating a new statutory body to spearhead the fight against white-collar crime. |
| Resource issue | Resource issue |
| "The Review recognises that the harm caused by fraud is second only to the trafficking of the most dangerous drugs," said Rosalind Wright, the former director of the Serious Fraud Office, who heads the body. | "The Review recognises that the harm caused by fraud is second only to the trafficking of the most dangerous drugs," said Rosalind Wright, the former director of the Serious Fraud Office, who heads the body. |
| Ms Wright, whose sat on the review's steering committee, said it would be "ludicrous" if the government could not now find the estimated £14.5m required to double the number of specialist fraud officers. | Ms Wright, whose sat on the review's steering committee, said it would be "ludicrous" if the government could not now find the estimated £14.5m required to double the number of specialist fraud officers. |
| "The Home Office and the Treasury refuse to make fighting financial crime a priority despite its huge impact on ordinary people and business, particularly small firms," she added. | "The Home Office and the Treasury refuse to make fighting financial crime a priority despite its huge impact on ordinary people and business, particularly small firms," she added. |
| "The review's proposals will prove pointless unless they are properly financed. The ball is in their court and it is up to them to say they will implement the recommendations and put some resources behind it." | "The review's proposals will prove pointless unless they are properly financed. The ball is in their court and it is up to them to say they will implement the recommendations and put some resources behind it." |
| The Home Office said it had provided funding to enable the City of London Police - which takes a lead role in investigating fraud across the capital and the south-east of England - to expand its operations. | The Home Office said it had provided funding to enable the City of London Police - which takes a lead role in investigating fraud across the capital and the south-east of England - to expand its operations. |
| Legislation currently being considered by Parliament would also make it easier to prosecute fraudsters, a spokeswoman added. | Legislation currently being considered by Parliament would also make it easier to prosecute fraudsters, a spokeswoman added. |
| "The Bill will improve the prosecution process by reducing the chances of offences being wrongly charged and should provide greater flexibility to keep pace with the use of technology in crimes of fraud," she said. | "The Bill will improve the prosecution process by reducing the chances of offences being wrongly charged and should provide greater flexibility to keep pace with the use of technology in crimes of fraud," she said. |