Written question asked by Lord Barker of Battle (Conservative) on Monday, 20 June 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 22 June 2005. It was answered by Mike O'Brien (Labour) on Monday, 27 June 2005 on behalf of the Solicitor General.

Fraud

Question: To ask the Solicitor-General if he will make a statement on the role of the Serious Fraud Office in investigating cases of fraud by staff at HM Customs and Excise.

Answer: The Director of the Serious Fraud Office may investigate any suspected offence involving serious or complex fraud.The overriding criterion is that the fraud is such that the direction of the investigation should be in the hands of those responsible for any subsequent prosecution.If a case involving allegations of fraud by officials of HM Customs and Excise (now HM Revenue and Customs) was referred to the SFO that met this criterion, then it would be accepted for investigation by the SFO.

Secondary information