Economic Crime: Planned Government Bill

Damian Collins Excerpts

Wednesday 26th January 2022 Commons Chamber

[Paul Scully]

I come back to this point: there is no reluctance to act. What I cannot do is pre-empt Her Majesty. Our appetite, as I say, remains undiminished. It is just a shame that the right hon. Gentleman hides behind Intelligence and Security Committee papers to throw political accusations when what we are trying to do is make sure that the taxpayers of this country get value for money and are not losing money, that the number of victims of economic crime is reduced and that they get their recoveries. Let us not make it a party political issue.

[Damian Collins (Folkestone and Hythe) (Con)]

Does my hon. Friend agree with the recommendation of the Joint Committee on the Draft Online Safety Bill that online platforms such as Facebook should not be allowed to profit from the advertising of known frauds and scams? As part of the online safety regime, they should be required to proactively block and withdraw advertising that promotes known frauds and scams.

[Paul Scully]

We are really aware of the issues and we appreciate the comments in that report. As that Bill progresses, we will consider them with all due process.