UK Inquiry Tracker

Fraud and Error

Public Accounts Committee Closed Inquiry

Opened: 23 Mar 2021 Closed: 16 Nov 2021 Parliament page

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the Government Counter Fraud Function estimated that the level of fraud and error against government was already between £29.3 billion and £51.8 billion annually. The National Audit Office’s work over the past year has shown that the risk of fraud and error has risen significantly during … Read more

16 Recommendations

15 Conclusions

1 Report

1 Oral session

6 Letters

1 Event

Activity timeline 9 events

14 Dec
2021

Correspondence

Correspondence from Mark Cheeseman, Director of the Government Counter Fraud Function, Cabinet Office, re PAC Fraud and Error, dated 3 Dece…

14 Dec
2021

Correspondence

Correspondence from Sarah Munby, Permanent Secretary, Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, re Covid Support Schemes – PAC…

28 Oct
2021

Report published

Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Ninth report from Session 2021-22

25 Oct
2021

Correspondence

Correspondence from Jim Harra, Chief Executive and First Permanent Secretary, re HMRC Error and Fraud – PAC Error and Fraud Report Recommen…

30 Jun
2021

Report published

Ninth Report - Fraud and Error

25 May
2021

Correspondence

Correspondence from Mark Cheeseman, Director of the Government Counter Fraud Function, Cabinet Office, re Follow up on Fraud and Error, dat…

25 May
2021

Correspondence

Correspondence from George Turner, Director, TaxWatch, re Response to Fraud and Error session on Thursday 29 April 2021, dated 18 May 2021

18 May
2021

Correspondence

Correspondence from Jim Harra, Chief Executive and First Permanent Secretary, re HMRC questions, dated 7 May 2021

29 Apr
2021

Oral evidence

Fraud and Error

Oral evidence sessions 1 session

29 Apr 2021

View on parliament.uk

Fraud and Error

Cat Little · Cabinet Office Jim Harra · HMRC Mark Cheeseman · Cabinet Office Peter Schofield · Department for Work and Pensions Sarah Munby · Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Reports 1 report · click to expand

Title	HC No.	Published	Items	Response
Ninth Report - Fraud and Error	HC 253	30 Jun 2021	31	Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

2 results

23 Recommendation Rejected

Ninth Report - Fraud and Error

In written evidence Cifas, the UK’s largest cross-sector fraud sharing organisation, told us there should...

In written evidence Cifas, the UK’s largest cross-sector fraud sharing organisation, told us there should be transparency around the businesses that have been in receipt of COVID-19 support scheme funds, and, in its submission to us, the Fraud Advisory Panel … Read more In written evidence Cifas, the UK’s largest cross-sector fraud sharing organisation, told us there should be transparency around the businesses that have been in receipt of COVID-19 support scheme funds, and, in its submission to us, the Fraud Advisory Panel agreed that transparency around fraud and error is “imperative” to maintain public trust and confidence.59 The Counter Fraud Function has said it wants to help ensure the UK is the most transparent government globally in how it deals with public sector fraud.60 In December 2020 we recommended that HMRC list details of companies who received support through the CJRS scheme to try and reduce the opportunity for fraud to occur.61 HMRC published details of employers claiming CJRS from December 2020 onwards, but told us there are “limits” as to what details it holds and can publish. HMRC explained that the publication of this information was “really just for public transparency of how 51 Q 69 52 Letter from Mark Cheeseman, page 3 53 Q 77 54 Letter from Mark Cheeseman, page 2 55 Qq 86, 87, 91 56 Fraud Advisory Panel submission, page 6 57 Qq 87,91; Letter from Mark Cheeseman page 3 58 Q 87 59 Cifas submission, page 3; Fraud Advisory Panel submission, page 5 60 C&AG’s Guide, page 4 61 Committee of Public Accounts, Covid-19: Support for jobs, Thirty-Fourth Report of Session 2019–21, HC 920, 20 December 2020 16 Fraud and Error public money is being spent”.62 HMRC told us it was not reliant on the public sharing of information to manage fraud risk as it was not an integral part of the fraud management process, although it welcomed any useful information as a result of doing so.63 In response to a parliamentary question about the list of companies offered coronavirus business interruption loans, BEIS stated it was seeing if it could “publish something soon”.64 In written evidence the Fraud Advisory Panel told us publishing data on loan recipients would have been useful as it could have assisted with the early identification Show less

Government Response

The government explicitly disagrees with the recommendation to set out new transparency principles for government support schemes, including a presumption of publishing business beneficiaries. It cites a duty to protect the privacy of small businesses and clarifies that information is published where required, with facilities from 2021 onwards reported on a new UK transparency database.

HM Treasury

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30 Conclusion Rejected

Ninth Report - Fraud and Error

We asked DWP and HMRC about the different departmental responses to similar fraudulent actions, such...

We asked DWP and HMRC about the different departmental responses to similar fraudulent actions, such as concealment of earnings. HMRC told us it has a policy of using criminal investigations in only the most serious cases, where it is the … Read more

Government Response

The government rejected what it interpreted as a recommendation, disagreeing with the committee's implied criticism of different departmental responses to fraud and stating that DWP and HMRC strategies are closely aligned, while committing to keep practices under review.

HM Treasury

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Government Response AI assessment · 31 of 16 classified

Accepted 20

Accepted in Part 3

Acknowledged 1

Deferred 1

Not Addressed 4

Rejected 2

Total 16 recs + 15 conclusions

Correspondence 6 letters

14 Dec 2021 Correspondence from Mark Cheeseman, Director of the Government Counter Fraud Function, Cabinet Office, re PAC Fraud and Error, dated 3 December 2021

Parliament page

14 Dec 2021 Correspondence from Sarah Munby, Permanent Secretary, Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, re Covid Support Schemes – PAC Fraud and Error Report Recommendations, dated 7 December 2021

Parliament page

25 Oct 2021 Correspondence from Jim Harra, Chief Executive and First Permanent Secretary, re HMRC Error and Fraud – PAC Error and Fraud Report Recommendation 3c, dated 24 September 2021

Parliament page

25 May 2021 Correspondence from Mark Cheeseman, Director of the Government Counter Fraud Function, Cabinet Office, re Follow up on Fraud and Error, dated 17 May 2021

Parliament page

25 May 2021 Correspondence from George Turner, Director, TaxWatch, re Response to Fraud and Error session on Thursday 29 April 2021, dated 18 May 2021

Parliament page

18 May 2021 Correspondence from Jim Harra, Chief Executive and First Permanent Secretary, re HMRC questions, dated 7 May 2021

Parliament page