Recommendation 18

On the deterrence effect of convictions and whether there is a sufficient level of convictions to create a suitable deterrent, the PSFA told us that it was not aware of any evidence to indicate what the right level of prosecutions would be to create a deterrent.56 After our evidence session, the Cabinet Office wrote to us providing us with statistics for the main areas of government’s prosecution activity, including HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) and Department for Work & Pensions (DWP). Between 2019–20 and 2021–22, HMRC’s criminal investigations had led to the prosecution of 1,090 and the conviction of 983 individuals. Between 2020–21 and 2022–23, DWP referred 1,213 cases to the Crown Prosecution Service or Procurator Fiscal for prosecution, and secured 1,154 convictions.57 While it acknowledged the importance of prosecutions and convictions, the PSFA said it was important to make use of the full suite of interventions available to government in tackling fraud and corruption, for example, better controls, better prevention and better use of data analytics. Cabinet Office told us about the importance of getting the balance between civil and criminal sanctions right. While successful criminal sanctions can create a very strong deterrent effect, they can also be expensive and time-consuming.58 Civil sanctions on the other hand can be discharged more quickly and with a lower burden of proof but may not offer the same deterrent effect.59