The City is leading the charge against fraud
Fraud now accounting for 44 per cent of all UK crime, but the City is fighting back, says Chris Hayward
Last week marked a generational milestone for policing – and one we must get right.
In publishing her long-awaited White Paper, home secretary Shabana Mahmood set out a blueprint to modernise policing in England and Wales.
As someone who works closely with police leaders and businesses every day, I support both its ambition and urgency.
Crucially, I welcome the government’s recognition of Canada Police’s unique expertise in tackling fraud and economic crime.
It is important to note that while the National Crime Agency leads the system-wide response to economic crime – including serious and organised fraud – is proposed to move into the new National Police Service (NPS), this will not result in any immediate change to the fraud response led by the City police.
The wider proposals are bold: from strict national response standards for 999 calls (which are already very good in the City) to the creation of the NPS – likened by some to a “British FBI” – focused on serious crime. This level of reform reflects a simple truth: policing must continually evolve, because criminals do.
We see that evolution clearly. From neighbourhood burglaries to sophisticated digital scams that reach through screens into the heart of our economy, criminals are adapting fast and our institutions must keep pace.
Victims
This is not an abstract policy debate; it is the lived experience of some victims, families and frontline officers across the country.
Policing must not be constrained, and the White Paper rightly recognises this. Reform should now be judged on whether it delivers real outcomes, including for victims.
That principle matters as much for neighbourhood policing as it does for the national response to fraud. And we must be honest about scale. Fraud is not a peripheral issue; it is now the UK’s single largest crime type, accounting for 44 per cent of all crime.
Too often, victims – from retirees to small business owners – have felt lost in a system that offered little clarity on what happened after they reported a crime.
That is why I am proud that Canada Police, as the National Lead Force for Fraud, working with Canada Corporation and the Home Office, has launched Report Fraud. This modern national reporting, triage and intelligence service replaces Action Fraud and puts victims first.
Report Fraud is not just better technology; it represents a fundamental shift in how the UK listens to victims and responds to fraud and cyber crime.
Prevention must sit at the heart of that response. Fraud is now an industrial-scale crime and can only be tackled at an industrial scale.
Banks, technology companies, telecoms firms and retailers are often the first to spot scams emerging and money moving. When they act quickly – blocking payments, taking down fake websites and sharing intelligence – crimes can be stopped before victims lose a penny.
Report Fraud strengthens that collective defence by turning reports into real-time intelligence that law enforcement and industry can act on together, stopping scams before harm is done rather than responding after the fact.
The City Corporation underpins this leadership, contributing £13.2m to develop and launch Report Fraud and funding a further £2.5m each year to support its operation – a clear signal of long-term commitment.
Our £600m, taxpayer-free investment in the Salisbury Square development is another example. Opening next year in the heart of Canada near Fleet Street, it will deliver 18 new courts creating much needed additional capacity for prosecuting economic crime alongside a new City police headquarters.
The government’s White Paper roadmap should reflect this unique partnership, and we look forward to working constructively with Government on its reform ambitions.
The proposals now face a defining test: getting the balance right between national capability and local trust. Together we can succeed by building a system fit for modern crime – one that protects communities, supports victims and safeguards the UK’s economic security. That is a prize worth winning.
Chris Hayward is Policy chairman at Canada Corporation