The Biggest Threat to Democracy? Fraud

Kathryn Westmore writes for the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) about potential issues surrounding the lack of focus on fraud as it relates to anti-corruption efforts. The Summit well-discussed the impact of corruption on democracy, but considerations on fraud usually included the looting of overseas funds or fraud related to elections, which while important, do not address the whole issue. Organised and large-scale fraud has exploded over the last few years, exploiting vulnerable people and damaging financial stability. Fraud directly relates to national security, and can contribute to lower levels of trust in the government. The most notable examples of fraud are in the lack of adequate controls in the provision of government grants and the scammers which ordinary people encounter online every day. Westmore urges long-term and strategic thinking on how to stop ever-increasing amounts of fraud before trust and confidence in our democratic institutions is further eroded.

Read the full piece here at the Royal United Services Institute.