Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions she has held with the Police Service of Northern Ireland on tackling telephone fraud.

This Government is committed to doing everything we can to stop criminals abusing telecommunications networks. As a part of the Fraud Strategy, we announced a consultation on extending the ban on cold calls to include all financial products. We have also consulted on stopping criminals from getting hold of SIM farms. We are currently considering what action needs to be taken to prevent criminals from abusing mass texting services.

These actions are in addition to the Telecommunications Fraud Charter, which is a voluntary agreement with the telecommunication sector that has resulted in over 600 million scam texts and tens of millions of scam calls being blocked. It is available here: Fraud sector charter: telecommunications - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

We continue to regularly engage with officials from the devolved governments, including Northern Ireland, on tackling fraud. This includes a discussion on fraud at the National Policing Board on 8 March 2023, chaired by the Home Secretary and attended by the Chief Constable of PSNI. Agenda and minutes are available online: National Policing Board - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).