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"only scratching the tip of the iceberg".
Is the Solicitor-General satisfied that the Government are doing enough to deter, detect and prosecute serious fraud in the UK?
The Solicitor-General: There is obviously a huge amount of fraud around, but yes, we have done a significant amount of work over the past few years. There is now a strategic authority for fraud, a fraud reporting centre is about to come online and there is a fraud intelligence centre. The City of London police are now the national fraud lead agency for investigations, and they have been beefed up. A good deal is happening and, of course, the SFO has undergone something of a transformation and is proceeding very strongly with a range of prosecutions. We think that we are doing a good deal to help with fraud.
Mr. Speaker: I call Richard Ottaway. He is not here.
Mr. David Drew (Stroud) (Lab/Co-op): I hear what my hon. and learned Friend the Solicitor-General says, and may I commend the SFO for its initiative in meeting Members of Parliament to talk about scams that have been operating in our constituencies? That is a good way forward and I found the session very instructive. Will she pass back our thanks and encourage the office to do more of that?
The Solicitor-General: I am grateful to my hon. Friend. I shall certainly take that message back to Richard Alderman, the director of the SFO, with whom we meet frequently. He seems to have got the Serious Fraud Office into a good and positive place.
Mr. David Heath (Somerton and Frome) (LD): I entirely support what the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) has just said. The initiative is extremely helpful. Welcome progress has been made on fraud, but does the Solicitor-General agree that it is crucial that other parts of the SFO's work do not suffer as a consequence? Will she join me in congratulating the SFO on its success in the Mabey and Johnson corruption case? Can she assure me that the Attorney-General will not put any barriers in the way of the SFO in the BAE Systems corruption case?
The Solicitor-General: Once again, I am grateful for the hon. Gentleman's praise of the SFO. It is indeed to be congratulated on the Mabey and Johnson case, which involved a series of offences of overseas corruption and the breaching of UN sanctions in connection with the oil-for-food programme. That company has now been ordered to pay almost £7 million. The SFO is clearly determined to continue its investigation of BAE. The papers have not arrived at the Attorney-General's office and so I cannot make any further comment about that.
David Taylor (North-West Leicestershire) (Lab/Co-op): Has the Solicitor-General read the Conservative party manifesto and its comments about poverty, the health service, higher education-
Mr. Speaker: Order. I fear that there is no way that the hon. Gentleman, notwithstanding his ingenuity, can get that question in order.
Mr. Edward Garnier (Harborough) (Con):
Does the Solicitor-General agree that there seems to be a huge range of Government agencies and prosecuting authorities
that deal with the wider subject of economic crime? Is she satisfied that that is an efficient and effective way of dealing with the matter? If she is, will she tell me why?
The Solicitor-General: I am not sure what broad range the hon. Gentleman means. Obviously, there are departmental prosecutors-the Department of Work and Pensions and so on prosecute their own cases. However, there is a body called the Whitehall prosecutors' group, who get together under the general superintendence of the Attorney-General and myself and exchange best practice. We hope that we have brought in a good deal more coherence, even though the special understanding of particular kinds of fraud that are endemic in particular Departments' fields needs to be preserved. I think that the hon. and learned Gentleman is aware that the Crown Prosecution Service and HM Revenue and Customs prosecution offices have recently merged. That has been a very successful exercise so far. At least I can give two examples that should reassure him that we are doing all we can to co-ordinate and make stronger our assault on financial crime.
Fraudulent Financial Schemes
8. Mr. Henry Bellingham (North-West Norfolk) (Con): What steps she plans to take to protect small and medium-sized businesses from fraudulent financial schemes. [293073]
The Solicitor-General: Through the national fraud strategy, the Government are implementing an integrated programme to make the UK a more hostile place for fraudsters. We are making it easier for small and medium-sized enterprises to report fraud, with the national fraud reporting centre going live, by phone and on the web, on 26 October. Importantly, we also have some guidance specifically tailored to help businesses protect themselves better from fraud. In addition, a more integrated law-enforcement response is being provided by the City of London police which, as I have said already, is the lead force in the country on fraud.
Mr. Bellingham: I am grateful for that reply, but is the Solicitor-General aware that there has been a very big increase in the number of small and medium-sized businesses falling prey to overseas internet money transfer scams? Typically, such scams involve the proposed transfer of large sums of money in return for bank details. She may say that firms are gullible for falling prey to such schemes, but does she agree that more should be done, perhaps through work with internet service providers?
The Solicitor-General: I am sure that that is a real possibility. The Serious Fraud Office has an online list of the current scams that it is aware of, and the intention is to alert people to falsities such as the hon. Gentleman has described. However, it is not only small businesses that are offered large amounts of money in return for their bank details: I get quite a lot of those offers myself, and I presume that other Members of Parliament do too. Happily, though, I have never yet fallen for any of them.
Recent figures show that 72 per cent. of small businesses think that they are more at risk of fraud as a result of the recession, but that only 22 per cent. are taking further steps to protect their interests. The figures also
show that 26 per cent. of small businesses do not check bank and credit card statements regularly, and that 28 per cent. of them do not reconcile purchase orders against goods supplied. There is clearly a lot of work that business itself should be doing, but we stand ready to help in every way that we can.
Human Trafficking
9. Mr. Anthony Steen (Totnes) (Con): If she will hold discussions with the Director of Public Prosecutions on policy for the prosecution of human trafficking offences. [293075]
The Solicitor-General: The Attorney-General and I have regular meetings with the DPP, at which we discuss a range of issues. We are due to see him later today. If there were particular concerns about the prosecution of human trafficking offences we would of course raise them with him, within the terms of the protocol between the Attorney-General and prosecuting Departments.
Mr. Steen: Will the Solicitor-General put on the agenda of the meeting with the DPP the question of confiscation orders against human traffickers? The orders rob traffickers of money, but they do nothing to help victims. Compensation orders for victims are allowed under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, but the money that confiscation orders take from traffickers automatically goes to the Treasury unless the DPP asks for compensation orders at the same time. It is a cruel joke that victims should be deprived of money in that way, and it goes totally against the spirit of the European convention on action against human trafficking which was approved by the Government and the House and which is now being brought into operation.
The Solicitor-General: When I put something on the agenda for a meeting with the DPP I usually have evidence to support it. All I have at the moment is the hon. Gentleman's assertion-
Mr. Steen: That should be good enough!
The Solicitor-General: Fine; I will take his word for that. However, if there is more evidence, please will he make sure that we have it?
Sir Alan Beith (Berwick-upon-Tweed) (LD): What thought is the Solicitor-General giving to the fact that it is very difficult to get victims of trafficking to act as credible witnesses? That is because, at the end of a trial, they will have no right to remain or to work outside the sex trade-and, obviously, no right to work in that trade either. Moreover, they will have a well founded fear that, if they are returned to their country of origin, they will suffer attack from the criminal associates of the people whom they may have helped to put behind bars.
The Solicitor-General:
The right hon. Gentleman knows that the situation for such people has improved very strongly, with our ratification and implementation of the convention. Such people have a far longer reflection period than is required by international law. Serious support is given to them-we will be funding the POPPY project, which is the leading agency to look after them,
to the tune of about £3.75 million over the next couple of years-and serious consideration is given to whether they should not be given a right to remain. We will do all that we can to ensure that such victims help the authorities and that they are properly supported and restored to a better life afterwards.
Philip Davies (Shipley) (Con): Has any assessment been made of whether the free movement of people across the EU makes it any more difficult to bring forward prosecutions for human trafficking?
The Solicitor-General: I am afraid that I do not know, but my instincts are that that probably does not make any difference. However, if a piece of work should be done on that, the all-party group on the trafficking of women and children will ensure that it is done.
Bribery
11. Mr. Mark Harper (Forest of Dean) (Con): What the Government's plans are for the introduction of legislation on bribery. [293077]
The Solicitor-General: We published a draft Bribery Bill, based on the recommendations of the Law Commission, on 25 March. Pre-legislative scrutiny preceded that, and the recommendations of the Joint Committee on the draft Bribery Bill were published on 28 July. We said in the draft legislative programme that we intended to introduce a Bill in the next Session.
Mr. Harper: Is the Joint Committee on the draft Bill right to be disappointed by the amount of time that the Government gave it to consider the Bill? Does the Solicitor-General think that it was deprived of a proper opportunity to carry out that pre-legislative scrutiny?
The Solicitor-General: I am not aware of any risk to the quality of the legislation from over-haste. The Joint Committee was very much in favour of the Bill in its report. After all, the process of modernising our bribery and corruption law has not been speedy. I served on a Committee that considered the last such Bill in 2003, so I cannot imagine that anyone feels that they have been pushed into anything.
Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York) (Con): Will the Solicitor-General explain the Bill's remit? Does it cover incidents of bribery and the provision of sweeteners in exports to third countries? In some situations, we have export credit guarantees, but foreign Governments with whom our companies are competing often give better export credit guarantee provision. How do we cope with the fact that sweeteners are a matter of fact in certain third countries?
The Solicitor-General: Discussion of the Bill's contents will have to wait until the Bill is published. I am not sure whether the hon. Lady is concerned that we will lose out competitively if we do not espouse bribery, but I would be totally opposed to such a principle.
Human Trafficking
12. Mr. Peter Bone (Wellingborough) (Con): What her assessment is of the effectiveness of laws relating to human trafficking for sexual exploitation. [293078]
The Solicitor-General: I am sorry to keep everyone waiting; all the numbers in my file are wrong, I am afraid.
We keep the effectiveness of the laws on human trafficking for sexual exploitation under review, as our action plan to deal with that topic makes very clear, and if there is a gap, we will tighten the law. As the hon. Gentleman no doubt knows, there are provisions in the Policing and Crime Bill to tackle the demand for exploitative forms of prostitution, including a strict liability offence that criminalises the payment for sexual services to prostitutes who have been subject to force, deception or threats.
Mr. Bone: It was well worth waiting for the Solicitor-General.
Following the question from My hon. Friend the Member for Totnes (Mr. Steen) about taking money from traffickers and giving it to the victims, is not another problem that the money is very quickly taken out of this country and redistributed to traffickers in the rest of the EU and that we can only confiscate money that remains in this country? Should we consider making this a European issue, so that we can get the money from across the whole of Europe?
The Solicitor-General: A good deal of work on asset recovery, the proceeds of crime and internationalising the issue is in process. As I told the hon. Member for Totnes (Mr. Steen), if there is any evidence that the Crown Prosecution Service is not applying for compensation to help victims, I would be very pleased to hear it, and if there are any accounts of defects in the process internationally, that will help us in the work that I have already indicated is going on. Therefore, examples would be very welcome.
Mr. Christopher Chope (Christchurch) (Con): Does the Solicitor-General accept that there is still a significant problem? In fact, human trafficking for sexual exploitation is increasing, and people are fearful that it will increase substantially in advance of the Olympic games. What are the Government going to do to reduce it?
The Solicitor-General: We are very much apprised of the hazard that an increase in trafficking will be connected with the Olympic games. Indeed, the hon. Gentleman will have seen that there is a similar apprehension about South Africa and the World cup. We have a concerted action plan, we have ratified the convention and we are totally compliant with all our international requirements, so we are engaged on a mission to try to reduce trafficking however and wherever it is found.
Since I answer in relation to the Crown Prosecution Service, I can indicate that the prosecution level has gone up considerably: in 2006-07, 40 people were prosecuted in connection with sexual exploitation; in 2007-08, 87 were prosecuted; and in 2008-09, 114 were prosecuted. Clearly, we are using the courts as a deterrent as well.
Joint Committee on Human Rights Report
13. Dr. Evan Harris (Oxford, West and Abingdon) (LD): What discussions she and the Attorney-General have had with ministerial colleagues on the report of the Joint Committee on Human Rights on allegations of UK complicity in torture. [293080]
The Solicitor-General: I have read the report of the Joint Committee on Human Rights and noted what was said. As the hon. Gentleman knows, the Home Secretary and Foreign Secretary have both given their response to the Committee's conclusions and recommendations. The Prime Minister has informed Parliament that allegations of potential criminal wrongdoing will be referred to the appropriate authorities. The Attorney-General has been clear that she will not provide a running commentary on those issues, and neither will I.
Dr. Harris: The Solicitor-General will be relieved to know that I am not going to ask about those issues. The Government's response to the report was very negative. Can she provide the House with any good reason why the previous guidelines to interrogators, suitably redacted, cannot be published, so that the House can know the guidance that the security services and interrogators used when dealing with overseas intelligence services and captives overseas?
The Solicitor-General: I cannot assist the hon. Gentleman with that, I am afraid. As he knows, several cases have gone to court, brought in particular by former detainees at Guantanamo Bay, and that will open up to them all the powers of disclosure that are in the hands of the High Court. If the Court thinks it appropriate to disclose the documents that the hon. Gentleman seeks, I have no doubt that it will do so.
Pro Bono Work
14. Christine Russell (City of Chester) (Lab): What recent progress she has made in encouraging lawyers to undertake pro bono work (a) in England and (b) abroad. [293081]
The Solicitor-General: The domestic and international pro bono co-ordinating committees, which the Attorney-General chairs, continue to undertake excellent work in encouraging lawyers to do pro bono work in the UK and abroad. That includes preparing for the annual pro bono week, which takes place from 9 to 13 November and is intended to raise awareness of pro bono work for lawyers and potential recipients. That week will celebrate the achievements of about 50 pro bono heroes, who have between them carried out 6,500 hours of pro bono work nationally during the past 12 months. If anybody has a non-Latin phrase instead of pro bono, it would be very helpful, because I am stumped for one.
Christine Russell: Can I tell the Solicitor-General about some pro bono heroes in my constituency? I do not know whether she is aware of this, but the College of Law at Chester runs an excellent pro bono scheme, whereby members of the public receive free legal advice from postgraduate students-under the full supervision of fully qualified staff, I hasten to add. Does she agree that that is a very good example of how we can encourage the next generation of lawyers to appreciate the value and, certainly, the need for pro bono work?
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