A fresh task force is set to pursue individuals involved in Covid-related fraud that harmed public funds, as announced by Rachel Reeves.
The Chancellor will introduce a specialized team with enhanced authority to levy significant penalties on those found guilty of defrauding government schemes during the pandemic.
This unit will have the ability to impose fines equal to 100% of the funds owed by offenders across various Covid programs, such as Eat Out to Help Out and bounce-back loans.
Additionally, it will have the power to prevent dishonest claimants from holding directorial positions in companies and recommend them for criminal inquiries.
Rachel Reeves criticized the Conservative Party for overseeing a period of widespread fraud, stating, “We are still paying the price for their mismanagement and favoritism… and we demand restitution.”
“We will recover the misappropriated funds and allocate them to essential sectors like education, law enforcement, and public services,” she added.
This new investigative team will operate as a trial initiative, supported by £15 million to ensure that those exploiting the system face repercussions.
This initiative follows a directive for companies and individuals who wrongly obtained Covid relief funds to refund the amounts by December through a voluntary repayment scheme.
If the funds are not returned, compensation orders will be enforced to recover the misused money.
According to the Treasury, over £10 billion was lost during the pandemic due to fraud, flawed contracts, and inefficiencies.
To date, more than £1.5 billion has been reclaimed.
The Chancellor has assigned counter-fraud commissioner Tom Hayhoe to lead the retrieval efforts.
Earlier this year, it was revealed that the failure to verify the quality of PPE for nearly two years resulted in a £762 million loss to taxpayers.
The Conservatives purchased excessive amounts of protective gear, leading to stockpiling in shipping containers due to storage space constraints.
However, delays in inspecting the surplus surgical gowns, masks, and visors resulted in expired warranties when the faulty PPE was eventually identified.