Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to support regional crime units to tackle (a) fraud and (b) cybercrime.

A new National Fraud Squad (NFS) has been established, consisting of a network of 400 new investigators across the National Crime Agency, City of London Police and Regional Organised Crime Units (ROCUs). The NFS is transforming the law enforcement response by taking a proactive, intelligence-led approach to identifying and disrupting the most serious fraudsters, domestically and overseas, jointly with government and industry.

The Home Office has provided funding to create a coordinated police Fraud Protect Network, made up of local, regional and national law enforcement officers and is designed to reduce the threat of fraud and revictimisation by providing consistent safeguarding advice to the public.

The Home Office also funds the Regional Cyber Crime Units (RCCUs) across England and Wales. These regional policing teams investigate and pursue serious cyber offenders, including supporting organisations during live ransomware attacks to get them back online as soon as possible. They also support businesses by providing cyber security support to help them reduce their vulnerability and threat of attack.