Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many investigations there have been into the fraudulent sale of (a) houses and (b) powers where a power of attorney has been used in each police force area; and if she will make a statement.

The Home Office collects information on the number of fraud offences that the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau refer to police forces for investigation but breakdowns specifically for those relating to fraudulent sales of houses are not separately identifiable. This data is published annually as part of the Home Office’s ‘Crime Outcomes in England and Wales’ publication. The latest available data for year ending March 2020 can be found be here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/crime-outcomes-in-england-and-wales-statistics

Related data on investigations where the use of a power of attorney has been involved is not held centrally.