Asked by: Pat McFadden (Labour - Wolverhampton South East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much funding his Department has (a) allocated for (b) spent on magazine subscriptions in each of the last three financial years.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The requested information is not centrally held, and complying with this request would incur a disproportionate cost to the department.
Asked by: Pat McFadden (Labour - Wolverhampton South East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what subscriptions to (a) newspapers, (b) magazines and (c) online journals his Department has paid for in each of the last three financial years.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The requested information is not centrally held, and complying with this request would incur a disproportionate cost to the department.
Asked by: Pat McFadden (Labour - Wolverhampton South East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much funding was (a) budgeted for and (b) spent on software updates to legacy computer systems in departments that no longer exist in each of the last three financial years.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The budget assigned to complete remediation of legacy IT is defined and agreed between the Chief Digital Information Officer and ultimately the Accounting Officer of each Department and HM Treasury. The Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO), in the Cabinet Office, does not have visibility of these figures directly, nor does CDDO monitor individual departments' technology spending on legacy treatment.
CDDO has established a programme to support departments in treating legacy. CDDO has agreed a framework to identify ‘red-rated’ systems, indicating high levels of risk surrounding the asset. Departments have committed to have remediation plans in place for these systems by 2025.
Asked by: Pat McFadden (Labour - Wolverhampton South East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his speech at the Institute for Government’s Annual Conference 2024, published on 23 January 2024, with whom the Minister of State Without Portfolio in the Cabinet Office has held meetings on identifying inefficiencies.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Ministers regularly meet with department officials and external stakeholders. Details of Ministerial meetings with external organisations and individuals are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK.
The Minister without Portfolio’s unique role allows her to work across government, supporting the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister for the Cabinet office, to identify where our public sector delivery is inhibited by bureaucracy and inefficiencies. The Minister’s overarching aim is to ensure that the provision of public services delivers the best possible value for the taxpayer.
Further information on the Minister without Portfolio’s role can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/people/esther-mcvey.
Asked by: Pat McFadden (Labour - Wolverhampton South East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his speech at the Institute for Government’s Annual Conference 2024, published on 23 January 2024, what steps the Minister of State Without Portfolio in the Cabinet Office has undertaken to identify inefficiencies.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Ministers regularly meet with department officials and external stakeholders. Details of Ministerial meetings with external organisations and individuals are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK.
The Minister without Portfolio’s unique role allows her to work across government, supporting the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister for the Cabinet office, to identify where our public sector delivery is inhibited by bureaucracy and inefficiencies. The Minister’s overarching aim is to ensure that the provision of public services delivers the best possible value for the taxpayer.
Further information on the Minister without Portfolio’s role can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/people/esther-mcvey.
Asked by: Pat McFadden (Labour - Wolverhampton South East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what meetings the Minister of State without Portfolio in the Cabinet office has held since her appointment.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Ministers regularly meet with department officials and external stakeholders. Details of Ministerial meetings with external organisations and individuals are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK.
The Minister without Portfolio’s unique role allows her to work across government, supporting the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister for the Cabinet office, to identify where our public sector delivery is inhibited by bureaucracy and inefficiencies. The Minister’s overarching aim is to ensure that the provision of public services delivers the best possible value for the taxpayer.
Further information on the Minister without Portfolio’s role can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/people/esther-mcvey.
Asked by: Pat McFadden (Labour - Wolverhampton South East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the planned timeline is for implementing the National Security Unit for Procurement within his Department; and who will be responsible for leading that unit.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The National Security Unit for Procurement, based in the Cabinet Office, will investigate suppliers who may pose a risk to national security and assess whether companies should be barred from public procurements. The Unit was announced as part of stepped up measures to protect national security in government contracts, and will be operational in time for commencement of the Procurement Act in Autumn 2024, when debarment and exclusion powers come into effect.
Asked by: Pat McFadden (Labour - Wolverhampton South East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an estimate of the total cost of (a) fraud and (b) error arising from (i) purchases of personal protective equipment, (ii) NHS Test and Trace, (iii) Government business support schemes, (iv) the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, (v) the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme and (vi) other aspects of the Government's response to the covid-19 pandemic.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA), established in August 2022, works with government departments and public bodies to understand and reduce the impact of fraud against the public sector.
Accounting Officers have primary responsibility for managing the risk of fraud in their department. They are accountable for understanding and managing the risk of fraud within the schemes and services they are responsible for delivering. As such, the latest estimates for potential fraud and error loss in the government’s Covid-19 support schemes can be found in departments’ Annual Reports and Accounts, available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/annual-reports-and-accounts-for-central-government-departments.
The latest information on post-event assurance for Test and Trace and PPE Procurement can be found within the Department for Health and Social Care's Annual Report and Accounts 2021-22 (paragraphs 761 – 774);
Detail of The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s central estimate for estimated levels of fraud and error loss in the Bounce Back Loan Scheme can be found within their Annual Report and Accounts; and
The latest information on error and fraud from HM Revenue & Customs can be found within HMRC’s Error and Fraud in Covid-19 Schemes publication.
Asked by: Pat McFadden (Labour - Wolverhampton South East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an estimate with Cabinet colleagues of the total cost to the public purse of (a) fraud and (b) waste arising from (i) benefit fraud, (ii) contracts signed during the covid-19 pandemic and (iii) tax evasion in each of the last three years.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA), established in August 2022, works with government departments and public bodies to understand and reduce the impact of fraud and error against the public sector. In line with the PSFA Mandate public bodies are required to report identified fraud and error loss figures to the PSFA. This is to aid transparency and fill the gaps in reporting. For this reason, the PSFA does not collect data on tax and welfare fraud and error losses, as these are published directly by HMRC and DWP respectively within their annual report and accounts process.
Fraud measurement work in Covid-19 spending is ongoing and as such the PSFA does not currently have sufficient information to estimate levels of fraud and error across government Covid-19 contracts. The PSFA publication reporting fraud and error losses incurred by Government in 21/22, will be published in due course.
Asked by: Pat McFadden (Labour - Wolverhampton South East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the total cost of fraud and error to government departments in the latest year for which figures are available.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA), established in August 2022, works with government departments and public bodies to understand and reduce the impact of fraud and error against the public sector. In line with the PSFA Mandate public bodies are required to report identified fraud and error loss figures to the PSFA.
The most up to date estimate used by the PSFA, relating to financial year 20/21 suggests that the annual level of fraud and error against the government is between £33bn and £55bn. This estimate excludes fraud and error within COVID-19 schemes as fraud measurement activity within these schemes is still ongoing.
The new Government Counter Fraud Profession Strategy sets out how the government is increasing the capability of staff within government and beyond to tackle fraud.