London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Oct 25, 2025

Boris Johnson accused of not taking online fraud seriously

Boris Johnson accused of not taking online fraud seriously

Boris Johnson has insisted his government takes online fraud seriously, after he failed to include it in crime statistics.

The prime minister was last week rebuked by a watchdog for claiming crime had fallen by 14%, which is only correct if fraud is excluded.

He was accused by Sir Keir Starmer of "turning a blind eye to scammers" at Prime Minister's Questions.

Mr Johnson said the government "hates online fraud" and was tackling it.

But he rejected a call by Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey to "correct the record on crime figures and apologise".

Sir Ed said Janet, a 74-year-old woman, had told the BBC she had £25,000 stolen by fraudsters.

'Hates fraud'


He said: "For Janet, and for the four million people who fell victim to fraudsters and scammers last year, fraud is a crime."

He asked the prime minister if he and his ministers understand the "hurt" they cause fraud victims when they "write them out of the crime figures and dismiss fraud as something people don't experience in their day-to-day lives".

Janet was one of 69 known victims of a scam which has seen criminals steal £3.9m since 2018 - but only one of their cases has been investigated, an investigation by BBC Radio 4's Money Box discovered.

The prime minister said Sir Ed "knows very very well that this government hates fraud, it hates online fraud."

He added: "We are tackling the scammers by helping people to come forward when they get an email, when they get duped, of course we are helping them in any way that we can.

"But we are also cutting the crime that affects people up and down our country, the neighbourhood crime, dealing with the county lines drugs gangs."

In last Monday's Commons debate on Sue Gray's report on lockdown parties in Downing Street, Mr Johnson said crime had come down by 14%.

But watchdog UK Statistics Authority (UKSA) said the PM "did not make clear" the figure excluded fraud.

'Lives destroyed'


It also criticised the Home Office for presenting the latest crime figures for England and Wales in "a misleading way" in a press release.

In its full report, the Office for National Statistics found a 14% increase in total crime in the year to September 2021, driven by a 47% increase in fraud and computer misuse, which surged during lockdown.

But crime excluding fraud and computer misuse decreased by 14%, largely driven by an 18% decrease in theft offences, the ONS said.

On Sunday, Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng defended the prime minister's use of statistics.


He told the BBC the prime minister had been talking about "crime that people experience in their day-to-day lives", which "in terms of burglary, in terms of physical injury, has gone down".

His words were seized on by financial campaigner Martin Lewis, who accused Mr Kwarteng of "denigrating the experience of fraud victims" and "the lives that have been lost or destroyed because of scams".

At Prime Minister's Questions, Sir Keir Starmer said: "We've had lockdown for the last two years. Two crimes that people could commit were online fraud and throwing parties.

"As far as I can see, the numbers for both of those have gone through the roof."

He accused Mr Kwarteng and the PM of insulting the victims of online fraud by suggesting it was "not a real crime".

The prime minister replied: "We're investing more into in tackling fraud but we're also tackling the neighbourhood crime that is of such massive psychological damage to people in this country."


The PM is pressed on his claims that crime is falling, as his figures did not include online fraud and computer misuse.


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
China and Russia Deploy Seductive Espionage Networks to Infiltrate U.S. Tech Sector
Apple’s ‘iPhone Air’ Collapses After One Month — Another Major Misstep for the Tech Giant
Graham Potter Begins New Chapter as Sweden Head Coach on Short-Term Deal
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa Alleges Poison Plot via Chocolate and Jam
Lakestar to Halt External Fundraising as Investor in Revolut and Spotify
U.S. Innovation Ranking Under Scrutiny as China Leads Output Outputs but Ranks 10th
Three Men Arrested in London on Suspicion of Spying for Russia
Porsche Reverses EV Strategy as New CEO Bets on Petrol and Hybrids
Singapore’s Prime Minister Warns of ‘Messy’ Transition to Post-American Global Order
Andreessen Horowitz Sets Sights on Ten-Billion-Dollar Fund for Tech Surge
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
×