Fraud body seeks collaboration with profession

An agency set up to create a national strategy for tackling fraud will seek to work closely with the profession in a bid to learn more about fraud and anticipate future trends.

The National Fraud Strategic Authority came into being yesterday and its chief executive, Sandra Quinn, immediately pointed to accountants as being key players in the fight against financial crime.

‘They’re in a position to spot fraud, to identify where it is happening and where it’s going in the future,’ she told Accountancy Age.

The new agency is charged with drawing up a counter fraud strategy in England and Wales and will report directly to the Attorney General.

It will also gather intelligence on fraud and review the effectiveness of action to tackle it.
The new body came about after a review in 2006 produced a series of recommendations on how to reduce the threat of fraud to the UK economy.

A report compiled for the Association of Chief Police Officers said fraud cost the UK almost £14bn in 2005.

BDO Stoy Hayward recently stated that reported fraud amounted to £705m in the first six months of this year.