Rudd announces new unit to tackle financial crimes

THE Home Secretary has launched a new unit to tackle financial crime and corruption. Amber Rudd said a new National Economic Crime Centre (NECC) would be established to oversee the police response to financial crimes and also forge closer links with the private sector.

The Government also published an anti-corruption strategy, setting priorities to tackle the insider threat in ports, prisons, policing and defence and reduce corruption in public procurement and grants.

According to official estimates, individuals lose a total of around £6.8billion a year to fraud – equivalent to around £100 per person – while money laundering costs the UK economy £90billion annually.

Ms Rudd said: “Today we are taking action against economic crime and by that I mean the high-level crime, the billions that have been laundered through the City of London, making sure we reduce that and we are very clear we expect higher standards of integrity in this country.”