Welsh Assembly Election Manifesto

Fighting fraud in Wales

Our manifesto proposals for the next Welsh Government.

The Welsh Government should support a coordinated industry and Government led education and awareness campaign on fraud; and for the Welsh Government to work with industry and law enforcement to create a universal advice pack that can be sent to victims of scams and fraud. This pack should be designed to be used by Government, charities, fraud prevention agencies and businesses.

Online identity protection should be taught to pupils from the age of 7 (Year 3) in Computing, PSHE and Financial Education classes – this education should have some basic focus on identity theft.

Financial Education in Welsh Secondary schools should be expanded to include a focus on fraud – what fraud is, how to protect yourself from falling victim, to recognise when you are committing fraud, and the impact fraud can have on both individuals and wider society.
Online identity protection, with a focus on identity theft, should be taught in Computing, PSHE and Financial Education classes in Welsh Secondary Schools.
As part of their safeguarding policies Welsh Secondary Schools should include teaching students about the risks of becoming a victim or committing fraud.

The Welsh education system should provide guidance to parents about how they can help protect their child’s identity online. This should be provided in packs to parents at Primary schools when their child reaches Year 3 and when their child starts at Secondary school.

Universities and colleges should be encouraged to work with fraud prevention agencies and other partners to provide students with fraud prevention and online identity protection advice.

The Welsh Government and Assembly should work to provide small businesses with advice on how they can protect themselves from fraud, particularly when a business is starting up.
The Welsh Government and Assembly should encourage Welsh businesses to share their data on fraud across different sectors to help prevent further fraud.

The Welsh Government should work with the Home Office Fraud Taskforce Victims and Vulnerable People Strand to start and identify groups who may be vulnerable to scams and fraud. Once these groups have been identified, tailored advice and support should be given.
The Welsh Government should encourage local councils to support their vulnerable people by signing up to the Cifas Protecting the Vulnerable Scheme.