By Kirstin Ridley
LONDON, July 14 (Reuters) - Britain should pave the way for its Serious Fraud Office to financially reward whistleblowers and create a new criminal offence for knowingly making false reports to law enforcement, a government-commissioned report said on Tuesday.
In the long-awaited, second part of an independent review, leading lawyer Jonathan Fisher urged the government to consult on the design of a new reward scheme and recommended making it a criminal offence to harass or intimidate whistleblowers.
After examining why the criminal justice system has struggled to keep pace with rising fraud, Fisher set out nearly 50 recommendations, including the creation of an independent arbitration panel to review whistleblower complaints.
Financial rewards for whistleblowers have long been a contentious issue in Britain, setting it apart from the United States, where enforcement agencies have long offered informants a share of funds recovered from wrongdoing.
Former SFO director Nick Ephgrave campaigned for payouts to help uncover economic crime offences before he left office in January.
But Britain's tax office moved first. HM Revenue & Customs last November launched a U.S.-style reward programme to help narrow Britain's 46.8 billion ($62.8 billion) tax gap, building on an existing scheme that allowed modest discretionary payments.
The SFO welcomed Fisher's recommendations, saying whistleblowers can provide vital intelligence that might otherwise go undetected,...
Foundational Context From 2016 to 2026, leaders from across the ideological spectrum in the United States and Latin America have doubled down on intentionally and consistently spreading false and ...