Agenda item

Fraud and Cyber Crime Reporting Service - Governance

To consider the governance of the next generation Fraud and Cyber Crime Reporting and Analysis Service (FCCRAS).

Minutes:

Fraud and Cyber Crime Reporting Service - Governance

The next generation Fraud and Cyber Crime Reporting and Analysis Service (FCCRAS) was to be a replacement for Action Fraud, the national fraud reporting service, which was a key component of the City of London Police’s (COLP) function as National Lead Force for Economic Crime. Whilst the COLP had been nominated to lead the procurement of the new service, it remained majority-funded by the Home Office, so was subject to their governance requirements. Due to the estimated cost of the project exceeding £100m, it was also subject to HM Treasury governance and as well as being subject to the government’s Infrastructure and Project Authority’s (IPA) gateway process. The project was also currently required to report to a number of City of London Corporation Committees and Sub-Committees.

 

‘Governance overload’ was cited as a critical risk to the project by the IPA in its recent Gateway 2 report. This was a view shared at the Home Office Finance and Investment Committee, which was due to consider the project on 18th March 2021 for approval to the next stage. Given their stated concerns and in order to streamline the governance and provide assurance that this risk was being recognised and mitigated, it was recommended that a dedicated Committee be established to take on the oversight and decision-making roles of the Committees and Sub-Committees that the project would otherwise report to. The new committee would be called the Fraud and Cyber Crime Reporting and Analysis Service Procurement Committee. The Chairs and Deputy Chairs of those Committees and Sub-Committees that the project would otherwise report to would comprise the membership of this new Committee, which would be time-limited for the duration of the procurement (no more than three years). This would address the serious concerns of the Home Office and IPA, while maintaining appropriate oversight and scrutiny of the procurement of what was a critical service for COLP and the Corporation.

 

Resolved - That the establishment of a Fraud and Cyber Crime Reporting and Analysis Service Procurement Committee be approved, to oversee the procurement of the next generation Fraud and Cyber Crime Reporting and Analysis Service. The new committee would be time limited to a period of three years (from April 2021 to April 2024) to cover the duration of the procurement of this service and would take on the responsibilities of those Committees and Sub-Committees currently overseeing this project, whose Chairs and Deputy Chairs will comprise the membership of the new Committee (as set out at Appendix 1).

 

 

Supporting documents: