PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
(16 July 2026)

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to recover public funds lost through fraud, misconduct and the improper award of public contracts; and how much has been recovered in each of the last five years.

Asked by:
Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat)

This government is taking the strongest action against fraudsters that seek to take advantage of the public sector.

That’s why the government introduced the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Act in December 2026 - giving us more tools to combat fraud, recover public money and allow the government to investigate fraud. The Procurement Act also takes tougher action on fraud and corruption against public contracts, excluding suppliers which have fallen foul of the fraud exclusion ground and pose particular risks.

Taking action against fraud and error has an impact. In 2024-25, the Government Counter Fraud Function delivered counter fraud and error savings of £7.53bn. This includes not only fraud and error recoveries, but also savings in prevented fraud and error. The Public Sector Fraud Authority’s Cross-Government Fraud Landscape Reports sets out where departments (except HMRC and DWP, which publish their own figures independently) have taken action to prevent and recover fraud and error.

Answered by:
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