The Fraud Act 2006

1 For an excellent discussion of the Act, going into much greater detail than space permits here, see David Ormerod, ‘The Fraud Act 2006—Criminalising Lying?’ [2007] Criminal Law Review 193. See also Nicholas Yeo, ‘Bull’s Eye’ (2007) 157 New Law Journal 212, 418. 2 Fraud Act 2006 (Commencement) Order 2006, SI 2006/3200 (C 112). 3 At least, one assumes that it is a single offence, which simply has different modes of commission. 4 Theft and Related Offences, Cmnd 2977, 1966. 5 The Act swept away the provisions of the Larceny Act 1916 in their entirety. 6 I shall leave aside the continuing dispute over the meaning of appropriation in theft, reflected in the cases of Lawrence v Metropolitan Police Commissioner [1972] AC 626, R v Morris, Anderton v Burnside [1984] AC 320, R v Gomez [1993] AC 442 and R v Hinks [2001] AC 241. See generally on the interpretation of the Act, JC Smith, ‘The Sad Fate of the Theft Act 1968’ in William Swadling and Gareth Jones (eds), The Search for Principle: Essays in Honour of Lord Goff of Chievely (Oxford University Press, 1999) 97. THE FRAUD ACT 2006