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Ex-SFO boss attacked over ‘sloppy’ leadership
The ex-boss of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has been attacked by a panel of MPs over his ‘shocking’ stewardship of the organisation.
The Telegraph reports Richard Alderman took 53 days foreign travel in one year and signed off on £1m of unauthorised payoffs to colleagues, MPs heard yesterday.
The grilling by the Public Accounts Committee also revealed Alderman (pictured) approved the arrangement which saw SFO’s former chief executive Phillippa Williamson work from her Lake District home two days a week, while the taxpayer picked up the £27,600 travel and hotel bill for her three days in London.
Under Alderman’s tenure the SFO Tchenguiz brothers investigation collapsed, it closed its probe into Bernie Madoff’s UK operations and declined to investigate LIBOR-rigging by UK banks, the report said.
“This is dilatory, this is sloppy and there is not one iota of contrition from you or apology for the culture that existed,” said Conservative MP Stewart Jackson. “It’s like Fred Karno’s Circus.”
Margaret Hodge, the committee chairman, said his leadership had been “shocking”.
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