But finance minister Reeves’ announcement that U.K. civil service costs will be cut 15 percent puts extra pressure on the SFO’s workforce. “It is madness,” said an economic crime expert at an NGO. “The government should, at the very least, exclude the enforcement bodies from cuts.”
“It’s an untenable situation where your enforcement capacity depends on civil service headcount numbers.”
Taking on more cases would require more funding. Although the government provided additional cash to the agency late last year, it is “peanuts” compared to what the agency needs, according to the economic crime expert.
The agency’s budget in 2025/6 was £88.9 million, which pales in comparison to the £1.8 billion it contributed to the Treasury over the last decade through the fines and penalties it has gathered. And even internally, there is a push for radical change to the tools in its armory.
In the U.S., the Securities and Exchange Commission — America’s main finance watchdog — offers whistleblowers a portion of the fines it collects from their information. In 2023, the agency issued its largest-ever award to a whistleblower, nearly $279 million. There’s no comparable offering for blowing the whistle on fraud and bribery in the U.K.
“Whistleblowers take us to the answers more quickly. The problem with whistleblowing in this country is that there is no benefit to the whistleblowing,” said Nick Ephgrave, the director of the SFO, in an interview with POLITICO.
Ephgrave disagreed that individuals should come forward with information simply because it is the right thing to do, and not be paid for doing so. “Do we live in the real world or not? These are people that have got status, they’ve got a mortgage to pay, they’ve got kids probably at private school, they’ve got membership of clubs.”
“The solution is inside information,” he said.
