Government should hire counter-fraud experts in wake of pandemic, watchdog warns
The auditors said that the Government should draw lessons from how it spent public money during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The Government should ensure that it has counter-fraud experts dotted across departments who can rapidly deploy in another Covid-style emergency and set up a clear way of dealing with new suppliers, watchdogs said.
The National Audit Office (NAO) said that a “flexible” system where people with the right skillset can be mobilised at short notice could help ensure that unscrupulous people do not take advantage of the Government.
The amount of fraud reported in the accounts that the NAO audited jumped from £5.5 billion over two years before the pandemic started to £21 billion in the two years afterwards.
“There is evidence of the Government learning lessons from recent emergencies and improving its approach to better prepare for future emergency spending,” said NAO head Gareth Davies.
“However, there is more to do to complete this analysis and bring it together.
“The NAO has set out lessons where action can be taken now by Government to prepare for future emergency spending.
“This includes clearer communications around rules and decision-making, improved management of staff and data, and increased transparency.
“If Government makes these changes now, it will be better placed to protect public spending, and public confidence and trust in it, the next time we face an emergency.”
A clear playbook is needed for buying in this situation
The NAO set out seven lessons that the Government should draw from the pandemic to help ensure that money is well-spent at the next emergency.
They included setting up plans of how to buy in “a seller’s market,” where the Government quickly needs products it does not normally buy, or deals with suppliers it does not normally deal with.
“In emergencies, Government will have reduced leverage and may have to deal with many suppliers they are not used to dealing with,” the NAO said.
“A clear playbook is needed for buying in this situation.”
Other recommendations included being clear that while public bodies might need to streamline their operations, but still need to “allow for robust oversight” and stick to normal rules about public spending.