Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Economic Crime

Thursday 4 September 2025 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • James Frith raised a case of fraud in his constituency where a local businessman was defrauded of 100,000 and local police and national authorities faced difficulties in investigating.
  • Ben Maguire discussed the demolition and reconstruction of a primary school in his constituency due to serious defects, causing significant financial loss and highlighting broader issues of contractor accountability.
  • The Minister expressed sympathy for the constituents affected by fraud and construction defects and acknowledged the need for closer examination of such issues.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 James Frith Lab Bury North
Policing & Resources Crime & Law Enforcement
Context

A businessman in Mr. Frith's constituency has been defrauded of £100,000. Local police lack the skills and resources to investigate, and the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau is unable to identify a line of inquiry.

Question

A businessman in my constituency has been defrauded of £100,000. Local police lack the skills and resources to investigate, and the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau says that it cannot identify a line of inquiry, even though my constituent has compiled evidence himself. To his great credit, my constituent is more concerned about how many more victims there will be while such crimes go uninvestigated and unpunished. Will the Solicitor General meet me to discuss how we can ensure that this crime is properly investigated and these wretched fraudsters are brought to justice?

Answer from The Solicitor General

I am very sorry to hear about the position that my hon. Friend’s constituent has been put in. I am sorry to say that it encapsulates perfectly why fraud is so damaging. The Government are doing everything in our power to crack down on fraud and corruption and support victims of these crimes. I am more than happy to meet my hon. Friend to see what more might be done in this case.

Answered
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Q2 Ben Maguire Lib Dem North Cornwall
Justice & Courts Education Employment
Context

A newly built primary school in Mr. Maguire's constituency was demolished and rebuilt due to serious defects, costing millions of pounds. The contractor at fault went into administration.

Question

The newly built Launceston primary school in my constituency was demolished and then rebuilt, costing millions of pounds because of serious defects in the building. The contractor at fault went into administration. Unfortunately, this is far from a stand-alone case; it is happening across the country. Individual developers are putting their companies into liquidation and then setting up a new one, evading their obligations to finish vital infrastructure such as roads and sewage works. Such cases often leave Government Departments, homeowners and the British taxpayer out of pocket. What steps is the Serious Fraud Office taking to tackle these all-too-common cases, and will the Solicitor General please consider new legislation to prevent such developers from getting away with such serious fraud?

Answer from The Solicitor General

I am sorry to hear about the position that the hon. Member’s constituents have been put in. It is a terrible example, which I am sure needs to be looked at much more closely. As he knows, the Serious Fraud Office is operationally independent. As a highly specialist agency, it takes on a number of complex economic crime cases each year. The case he raises may be one for it; it may also be one for Action Fraud. I am more than happy to examine it further and to raise it with the appropriate agency.

Partly answered

Not addressed: new legislation

How: Asking The Hon. Member To Look At The Case Closely, But Not Committing To New Legislation

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