Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 4
4
Government is not doing enough to promote the effective sharing of data, which is stopping...
Recommendation
Government is not doing enough to promote the effective sharing of data, which is stopping departments from maximising the savings they could make from data analytics. Government bodies have legal frameworks through which to share data, such as those established by the Digital Economy Act 2017, but find it time-consuming and difficult to do in practice. The PSFA told us it is taking steps to make this process simpler and quicker. The PSFA also told us it is building a library of counter- fraud controls to encourage and enable better data sharing and to make it easier for government bodies to know what datasets and tools are already available. GDS said it was building a single data platform for use across government that will enable government bodies to find and use data assets. But government does not make full use of the other data- sharing tools available to it. For example, the National Fraud Initiative tool (NFI), which local authorities must use and through which they save millions of pounds by matching their own data with that of other local authorities, is not mandatory for central government. This means the NFI does not benefit from much of central governments data to help flag more potential fraud, and that central government itself does not realise some of the potential savings. recommendation a. The Public Sector Fraud Authority should write to the Committee within 6 months to explain its progress in developing a library of counter-fraud controls. It should also set out its steps to identify and address issues with data sharing through the Digital Economy Act, to make this process simpler and quicker. This communication should include an evaluation of how its work has enabled greater sharing of data and greater use of data analytics. 5 b. In the Treasury Minute response to this report the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology should set out further information on the single data platform. This should include the timetable for completion and be
Government Response
Response Pending
HM Government
Response Pending
The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. fraud controls that support public bodies to embed preventative and detective controls. The PSFA’s Data and Analytics Team is developing a central list of counter fraud data analytics controls that includes guidance on different controls to help mitigate different fraud risks. For example, when and how data matching and machine learning techniques should be used. This library is being co-developed and tested with the International Public Sector Fraud Forum (IPSFF), ensuring it is informed by international best practice. The government will provide a progress update to the Committee in six months’ time. The update will also include the ongoing actions to improve the process of data sharing through the powers enabled by the Digital Economy Act (DEA). Since the National Audit Office’s report in 2025, the DEA Secretariat has enacted a series of reforms to simplify the data sharing pilot process through the use of AI to automate proformas. Building on this, the update will set out the progress of the DEA fraud pilots, including those moving into business as usual, and the progress in undertaking a review of the DEA Code of Practice to ensure it facilitates simpler and more streamlined pilots. The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. which is a single data platform to facilitate discovery of public sector data assets. The Data Marketplace private beta phase has now concluded. Learnings from the private beta include the need to reduce the manual requirements placed upon departments to record and update metadata, and clearer guidance on identifying assets that are valuable outside of their organisation. A Discoverability Service is currently being scoped, which will build on learnings from the Data Marketplace, and link directly to departments existing tools and processes. This will significantly reduce the burden on departments and will be reusable across a broader range of data sharing use cases, including fraud and error. A Minimum Viable Product, focused on a small number of use cases, is expected to be delivered by December 2026. To further support this work, a Data Asset Management Policy will be rolled out across government over the next 18 months. This policy sets out the requirements for central government departments and their Arm’s Length Bodies to identify and record critical data assets. It further sets out minimum requirements for quality, discoverability, and interoperability together with defining clear data ownership. This cross-government framework is essential to enable safe data reuse, improve quality and reduce duplication across departments. It will establish the lifecycle controls need to treat critical data, including within fraud and error, as an asset, supporting all strategic outcomes. The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. track record of detecting, preventing and recovering fraud. The PSFA is assessing the impact of implementing the NFI across central government, and the different routes to which it could be mandated accordingly. This assessment will be informed by the views of counter fraud teams across the Government Counter Fraud Function, alongside an estimation of additional counter fraud outcomes following any changes. The government will use this assessment to inform a decision and will communicate that decision to the Committee.