Select Committee · Public Accounts Committee
The Work of the COVID Counter-Fraud Commissioner
Status: Open
Opened: 12 Dec 2025
Inquiry scope
The role of the COVID Counter-Fraud Commissioner is cross-cutting, drawing on the Public Sector Fraud Authority, Government Commercial Function, and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) as part of government’s attempt to claw back taxpayers’ money lost to fraud and undelivered contracts during the pandemic. The Commissioner has an initial focus on PPE procurement, and is empowered to scrutinise COVID spending and the recovery of public funds in other schemes, including Furlough, COVID Grants, and Bounce Back Loans. The Public Accounts Committee has a long-standing interest in policy delivery with relation to tackling fraud against the public purse, both before, during and after COVID. Its 2023 report into tackling fraud and corruption against government found that large gaps remain in government’s understanding of its exposure to fraud and corruption. In 2022 , it reported on the management of PPE contracts, identifying significant failings leading to a stockpile of almost 4 billion items that were not needed, with further scrutiny conducted the same year on the eye-watering levels of fraud in the Bounceback Loan Scheme. Its 2023 report on pandemic-era employment support schemes found a lack of proof of impact of £97bn of taxpayers’ money spent on furlough and self-employed job support, with a second report that year on COVID grant schemes found government slow to take action to recover losses to error and fraud of over £1bn. As part of its ongoing scrutiny of work to recover money lost to fraud and error during the pandemic, and of government’s efforts to protect the taxpayer from fraud more generally, the PAC will take evidence from the COVID Counter-Fraud Commissioner on the work in this area being undertaken as part of their role. If you have evidence on these issues, please submit here by 23:59 on Monday 30 March 2026. Please look at the requirements for written evidence submissions and note that the Committee cannot accept material as evidence that is published elsewhere. The Committee decides what information to publish and how. You can request anonymity or confidentiality when you send evidence, but it is for the Committee to say whether it will agree.It may treat submissions confidentially, even where you have not requested this. Please note that the Committee’s inquiry cannot assist with individual cases. If you need help with an individual problem you are having, you may wish to read the information on Parliament’s website about who you can contact with different issues.Oral evidence sessions
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| Date | Session and witnesses | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 6 Jul 2026 | Beth Russell · HM Treasury, Chris Jones · Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Elizabeth O'Mahony · Department of Health and Social Care, Janet Alexander · HM Revenue and Customs, Marcus Mason · HM Treasury, Mark Cheeseman OBE · Public Sector Fraud Authority, Nico Heslop · Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Samantha Jones OBE · Department of Health and Social Care, Steven Greenwood · Department for Business and Trade, Tom Hayhoe · Legal Services Consumer Panel | View ↗ |
Who gave evidence
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| Witness | Organisation | Sessions |
|---|---|---|
| Beth Russell · Second Permanent Secretary | HM Treasury | 1 |
| Chris Jones · Director, Delivery and Analysis | Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office | 1 |
| Elizabeth O'Mahony · Interim Director General Finance | Department of Health and Social Care | 1 |
| Janet Alexander · Director, Compliance Operations Directorate | HM Revenue and Customs | 1 |
| Marcus Mason · Director for Public Spending | HM Treasury | 1 |
| Mark Cheeseman OBE · Chief Executive | Public Sector Fraud Authority | 1 |
| Nico Heslop · Director of Local Government Finance | Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government | 1 |
| Samantha Jones OBE · Permanent Secretary | Department of Health and Social Care | 1 |
| Steven Greenwood · Director - Grant Delivery Directorate | Department for Business and Trade | 1 |
| Tom Hayhoe · Chair | Legal Services Consumer Panel | 1 |
Correspondence
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