The Senior Counter Fraud & Investigations Manager introduced the report which outlined the performance of the Counter Fraud & Investigation Department over the last year as a whole as well as the work the department have delivered nationally for other public bodies. He highlighted that, as Local Authorities did not have the power to investigate, claims of benefit fraud that had been passed onto the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) fell within the “no fraud” category.

The Chair asked how lucrative the work delivered for other public bodies had proven, Members were advised that the forensic service had successfully paid for itself through its traded work.  The Vice-Chair asked if there were plans to work with more organisations in future, the Senior Counter Fraud & Investigations Manager confirmed the department was looking to develop additional relationships moving forward.

The Chair requested a distinction be made between cases of no fraud and those cases which were passed to DWP to make the data clearer.  At present the options listed were the only reporting options, therefore cases which were passed to DWP were marked as “no fraud” with an additional comment advising the matter had been referred onwards, following the Chair’s request however the department would look to amend the reporting options.

The Senior Counter Fraud & Investigations Manager highlighted page 25 of the agenda, and the fact that 45 alerts had been shared within the past year.  The department worked closely with Action Fraud (part of City of London) which enabled better sharing of information around risks such as phishing and lotto scams.

Jason Oliver praised the department for achieving a 400% return, but also on their success in holding influence at a national level, which was not common for Thurrock and was an achievement to be commended.

Councillor Collins echoed comments congratulating officers on their hard work.  He asked for clarification around the process of passing on details of crimes.  Members heard that any crime investigated was logged internally and details of wider crimes such as scams or organised crime was also reported to Action Fraud.  Councillor Collins requested figures for Thurrock.

Councillor Gerrish asked what made Thurrock stand out in terms of its forensic capabilities.  The Committee was advised that Thurrock was the only Local Authority with its own digital forensic service.  Officers were highly qualified, more so than some police forces, and Thurrock offered lower rates than private companies.  Government to Government work also meant that officers had access to more systems than would be available to private firms.

RESOLVED:

That the Standards and Audit Committee notes the performance of the Counter Fraud and Investigation Directorate over the last year.