Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans the Government has to recover coronavirus support loans that were fraudulently obtained; and if he will make a statement.

The Government is committed to bearing down on fraud in the Covid-19 loan schemes and we are working with lenders, law enforcement, and partners to recover fraudulently obtained loans.

At the Spring Statement 2022, my Rt. Hon Friend the then Chancellor of the Exchequer announced almost £50 million of additional funding for counter-fraud work, of which over half related to Bounce Back Loans.

As of October 2022, Insolvency Service action on Covid-19 support scheme fraud has resulted in 391 director disqualifications and 119 bankruptcy restrictions, the majority relating to BBLS fraud. They have also achieved 2 criminal prosecutions. The National Investigation Service (NATIS) have a total recoveries target of £6 million this financial year and have recovered £5.8 million to date.

It should be noted the estimate of suspected fraud and error loss has been revised downward between the Department’s Annual Reports and Accounts 2020-2021 and 2021-2022, now with a realised lifetime fraud and error loss estimate of 4.24%.