§ The Earl of Northeskasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether law enforcement agencies are receiving adequate funding to combat cybercrime, in the light of the comments of Detective-Constable Tony Noble of the Surrey Police computer crime unit at the recent computer and Internet crime conference. [HL1026]
§ The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Scotland of Asthal)I understand that at this conference Mr Noble made comments concerning the resourcing of his force's computer crime unit, and stated that some reports of computer crimes were not investigated further.
113WAThe provision for policing in England and Wales has increased by over £2.3 billion or over 30 per cent between 2000–01 and 2004–05. The recent spending review settlement will allow us to continue with this significant investment in policing. There are now record numbers of police officers.
Practical decisions on how the police allocate the additional resources and manpower we have made available rests with the police themselves.
A decision as whether to investigate and prosecute a possible offence is a decision which is taken by law enforcement, in conjunction with the Crown Prosecution Service as appropriate.