Thirteenth Report - Initial lessons from the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic

Select Committee

Public Accounts Committee HC 175 25 July 2021

Report Status Government responded

Conclusions & Recommendations 27 items (21 recs)

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Government Response (AI assessment · 24 of 27 classified)

Accepted 21

Acknowledged 1

Not Addressed 2

Government response

Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Thirteenth report from Session 2021-22 · published 8 Nov 2021

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Recommendations & Conclusions

5 results

5 Recommendation Not Addressed

Government has yet to improve its approach to managing risk or set out which trade-offs...

Recommendation

Government has yet to improve its approach to managing risk or set out which trade-offs it intends to make in future emergencies. The pandemic has highlighted the importance of carrying out robust risk planning and being clear about risk appetite … Read more

Government Response Summary

The government's response is completely unrelated to the recommendation, discussing BBC audience decline and strategies rather than the implementation of a risk management profession.

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1 Conclusion Not Addressed

On the basis of a Report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence...

Conclusion

On the basis of a Report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence from the Cabinet Office, the Department of Health & Social Care (the Department) and HM Treasury on initial lessons from the government’s response to the … Read more

Government Response Summary

The government's response provides an overall introduction to its response to the Committee's report, outlining the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and the government's actions, rather than specifically addressing this introductory conclusion about the committee's evidence session.

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15 Conclusion

The NAO found that the pandemic had disproportionately impacted specific groups of people.

Conclusion

The NAO found that the pandemic had disproportionately impacted specific groups of people. For example, disrupted schooling is likely to have longer-term adverse effects on children from disadvantaged backgrounds. The Education Endowment Foundation predicted that schools closures in the 2019/20 … Read more

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19 Conclusion

Our previous work has shown a mixed picture in terms of the views of end...

Conclusion

Our previous work has shown a mixed picture in terms of the views of end users regarding the satisfaction and success of programmes introduced in response to the pandemic. Gathering feedback from end users and frontline workers is vital for … Read more

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25 Conclusion

Our recent report on fraud and error highlighted that the taxpayer is expected to lose...

Conclusion

Our recent report on fraud and error highlighted that the taxpayer is expected to lose billions of pounds from the increased risk of fraud and error in the government’s COVID-19 schemes. It found that the cost of fraud and error … Read more Our recent report on fraud and error highlighted that the taxpayer is expected to lose billions of pounds from the increased risk of fraud and error in the government’s COVID-19 schemes. It found that the cost of fraud and error within the tax and benefits system is fairly well understood by government, and HMRC and DWP have well- established approach to tackle and address fraud and error in their areas. But for many areas of spend outside the tax and benefits system there is still no formal measurement and limited capability to tackle fraud and error, risking large amounts of fraud and error being unidentified or untackled.53 We therefore asked HM Treasury what it was doing to ensure that Departments pay greater attention to identifying and addressing fraud and error and complied fully with requirements set out in Managing Public Money. HM Treasury and 50 Qq 4–6 51 C&AG’s Report, paras 5–11; Committee of Public Accounts, COVID-19: Support for children’s education, Committee of Public Accounts, COVID-19: Bounce Back Loan Scheme, HC 687, Session 2019–21, 16 December 2020, para 1; C&AG’s Report, para 6 52 Qq 21, 41; C&AG’s Report, paras 7–8 53 Committee of Public Accounts, Fraud and Error, HC 253, Session 2021–22, 30 June 2021 Initial lessons from the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic 19 the Cabinet Office explained that, as well as departments with established counter-fraud capabilities, such as the Department for Work & Pensions and HM Revenue & Customs, other departments such as the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport and the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs had to deal with increased fraud risks. It told us that government was supporting those departments with additional resource and capability, strengthening the counter-fraud and finance functions, and reminding accounting officers of their responsibilities with regard to fraud and error.54 Show less

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