Pressure grows on UK to beef up measures to tackle economic crime

MPs and experts demand immediate action after shock resignation of minister over 4.3bn Covid loans fraud bill

MPs and anti-corruption experts have warned that the UK government must not delay long-awaited measures to tackle economic crime, after a minister resigned over the government's failure to prevent more than 4.3bn in fraudulent claims for Covid business loans.

Lord Agnew dramatically quit on Monday as a minister at the Treasury and Cabinet Office with oversight of fraud prevention, in another blow to the embattled prime minister. In a resignation letter to Boris Johnson, published on Tuesday, Agnew revealed that in a decision apparently taken last week, a key piece of legislation, the economic crime bill, had been rejected for consideration during the next parliamentary year. He described the decision as foolish".