Summary
A report states that most of the £10.9 billion lost to fraud and errors in UK Covid support schemes cannot be recovered. This loss mainly happened because many organizations were not ready to handle the large and urgent spending required during the pandemic.
Key Facts
- The UK lost £10.9 billion to fraud and errors in Covid support schemes.
- Employment support, such as furlough, saw about £5 billion in fraud.
- Poor planning and lack of controls were main reasons for these losses.
- £13.6 billion was spent on personal protective equipment (PPE), with many items unused.
- The Bounce Back Loan Scheme had vulnerabilities, losing up to £2.8 billion to fraud.
- The government has recovered £1.8 billion of the lost money so far.
- A voluntary repayment scheme was started to encourage returning of improperly obtained funds.
