Local responses to a national initiative on organised crime and local government procurement fraud
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JFC-12-2018-0129 |
| Pages | 78-91 |
| Published date | 22 January 2020 |
| Date | 22 January 2020 |
| Author | Alan Doig,Peter A. Sproat |
| Subject Matter | Financial risk/company failure,Financial crime |
Local responses to a national
initiative on organised crime
and local government
procurement fraud
Alan Doig and Peter A. Sproat
Newcastle Business School, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to research how localcouncils in England responded to a national
initiativeintended to address the risk of the involvement of organised crime in local governmentprocurement
fraud. Inso doing, it considers definitional issuesbefore undertaking original research to explorehow councils
responded and, through in-depth interviews with three councils, what initial explanations may explain the
responses. It concludes that the national initiative was insufficiently thought-through, and that councils’
responses weresignificantly influenced by the relevance of the threat of organised crime,financial constraints
and competingpriorities.
Design/methodology/approach –The case study involves a literature review, an analysis of official
documentation,a questionnaire to localcouncils in the north of England and semi-structured interviews with
anti-fraud practitionersin three councils in the northeast of England. The approach is to providean analysis
of the implementationof a national initiative to promote a local governmentresponse to procurement fraud by
organisedcrime.
Findings –On the basis of original research, the paper proposes that the national initiative was
insufficiently thought-through,and that councils’responses were influencedby the relevance of the threat of
organisedcrime, financial constraints and competing priorities.
Research limitations/implications –The research looksat a national initiative and how local councils
responded within the contextof financial and other constraints.The research is limited in terms of the range
of responses it sought, and that it only studied the experience of three local councils in detail. On the other
hand, its findings supportfurther research into the implementation of national initiativesin terms of practice
on the ground.
Practical implications –The findings identify issues surrounding the design and implementation of
national anti-fraudpolicies from the perspective of local government and will be of value to practitionersand
academicsinterested in fraud, policing, organised crime, local governmentand policy making.
Originality/value –The paper is the first study in the UK on the local implementation of national
strategies on procurementfraud and organised crime and raises positive and less-positive aspectsof how far
national strategies and intentionsare addressed on the ground, with a focus on what factors may influence
local implementation.
Keywords Fraud, Organized crime, Local government, Procurement fraud
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
In 2017 a Home Office ministerannounced that organised crime looks “to exploit any avenue
that they can tap into in order to make massive profits or launder their dirty money”, and
that his department’s ownresearch suggested that “organised crime groups are now looking
to benefit from public sector contracts”[1].He proposed that each police force should “work
more closely than ever with local authorities”, share information on known crime groups,
JFC
27,1
78
Journalof Financial Crime
Vol.27 No. 1, 2020
pp. 78-91
© Emerald Publishing Limited
1359-0790
DOI 10.1108/JFC-12-2018-0129
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