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New enforcement unit pursues billions lost to British
taxpayers during pandemic
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Recovery efforts intensify as nearly 2,000 company directors
banned and 86 criminals prosecuted
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Investigators will be able to search properties, seize
assets, and recover money directly from the bank accounts and
wages of those who cheated the system
The Public Authorities Fraud Investigation and
Enforcement Service (PAFIES) has begun pursuing
suspected fraudsters, armed with the strongest investigatory
tools in a generation.
Now, new powers will give investigators the ability to search the
premises of suspected fraudsters and seize money directly
from fraudsters' bank accounts if they do not pay back what
they owe. On top of that the window to pursue
Covid fraudsters has been doubled from six to twelve years
with all new powers becoming available to the
government fraud squad this autumn.
The further action comes as measures introduced at the 2024 and
2025 Budgets are calculated to have protected £7.5 billion of
public money from fraud over two years.
Chancellor said:
In contrast to the last government, who left the door open to
£10.9 billion of pandemic era fraud and error, we have
taken action to protect £7.5 billion of public money.
My message to those who owe the public purse money is clear -
those who profited, will pay.
, Parliamentary Secretary in
the Cabinet Office said:
Those who chose to exploit a national crisis to line their own
pockets now have nowhere left to hide.
Our decision to go after those who have cheated
the system as part of our wider crackdown
on fraud against public services has already helped
save £7.5 billion. We will use every tool at our disposal to
protect public money and fund the frontline services the British
people rely on.
The crackdown comes as the Chancellor announced the government's
response to the Covid Counter Fraud Commissioner's
final report, which laid bare the full scale of
pandemic fraud. £10.9 billion money that should have funded
the NHS and our schools was initially lost to fraud.
Nearly 2,000 company directors have already been banned and 86
criminals prosecuted to date.
Powers from the PAFER Act 2025 extended the limitation period for
civil claims relating to Covid fraud against public
authorities from six years to twelve, meaning that
suspected fraudsters can be pursued until 2032.
The Act will also give the government fraud squad
powerful new tools to tackle fraud, including enhanced
investigation, search-and-seizure, and information-gathering
powers, with the authority to compel information from third
parties.
It also introduces civil financial penalties to accelerate
enforcement and enables the direct recovery of fraud-related
debts from earnings and bank accounts following a PSFA
investigation.
Those who did not respond to Voluntary Repayment Scheme last year
will now face the full force of the new powers in the autumn.
A Covid fraud reporting website, set up in September
last year, has received over 1,000 reports of
suspected fraud.
