Crime and Policing Act 2026 – corporate criminal liability extended
Crime and Policing Act 2026 – corporate criminal liability extended
The Crime and Policing Act 2026 (CPA) received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026. The act is part of the government’s Safer Streets Mission and intends to tackle street crime and antisocial behaviour. Section 250 of the CPA, hidden in Part 17 ‘Miscellaneous and general’ however deals with criminal liability of bodies and partnerships. The section comes into force on 29 June 2026.
It provides that where a senior manager of a body corporate or partnership, acting within the actual or apparent scope of their authority, commits an offence under the law of England and Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, the organisation also commits the offence.
What is a senior manager?
A senior manager is an individual who plays a significant role in the making of decisions about how the whole or a substantial part of the activities of the organisation are to be managed or organised or the managing or organising of the whole or a substantial part of those activities.
The definition is broad, applying a functional test that focuses on actual influence and responsibilities rather than the formal job title of the individual concerned. Depending on the organisation’s structure, not only board members but also functional heads, regional or division leaders and de facto decision-makers could be caught.
What is actual or apparent authority?
The section does not require authority to commit the offence, but the act of the senior manager must be of a type that such senior manager was authorised to undertake, or which would ordinarily be undertaken by a person in that position.
Actual authority can be express (e.g. contained in a board resolution or a power of attorney which sets out the senior manager’s mandate) or implied.
Implied authority can be incidental to an express authority (i.e. a senior manager has implied authority to do anything reasonably necessary to carry out its express authority), arise from the role of a senior manager or from past conduct.
Apparent authority is inferred when an organisation represents to a third party that a senior manager has authority to act on its behalf, even if the senior manager does not actually have that authority.
Whether or not a senior manager has actual or apparent authority will be a question of fact and will be determined by the circumstances of each case. The example given by the explanatory notes is of a CFO committing fraud by making false statements about the organisation’s financial position. The act of making financial statements is within the scope of a CFO’s authority.
What is an offence?
Under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCTA), organisations could be criminally liable where a senior manager commits specified financial crimes (e.g. fraud, false accounting, bribery) while acting in the scope of their actual or apparent authority. With the CPA, the government extends the scope to any criminal offence.
Given the actual or apparent authority requirement, the criminal offence of the senior manager will need to have a connection to the business of the organisation. Potential areas include but are not limited to, health and safety, workplace conduct, consumer protection, data protection, sanctions etc.
Are there defences?
Unlike the existing corporate criminal offences of failure to prevent fraud, failure to prevent tax evasion and failure to prevent bribery, section 250 CPA does not provide a “reasonable procedure” defence. An organisation could therefore become liable regardless of it having preventive measures in place.
Governance frameworks, control procedures and documented training can still play a crucial role – they could not only reduce the risk of a senior manager committing an offence from the outset but also be taken into consideration when it comes to sentencing and imposing fines.
How can organisations prepare?
Organisations should:
review their delegation and approval structure to identify individuals who have actual or apparent authority and could therefore be caught by the senior manager definition of section 250 CPA;
provide identified senior managers with additional training to raise awareness of the expanded scope of corporate criminal liability;
liaise with HR to ensure new joiners at senior manager level receive relevant briefings and training;
review and assess their existing policies, procedures, reporting and monitoring structures in relation to all non-financial criminal risks; and
review existing insurance policies and the provided coverage.
