Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Twenty-Sixth Report - The Department for Work and Pensions’ Accounts 2021–22 – Fraud and error in the benefits system
Public Accounts Committee
HC 44
Published 9 November 2022
Government response
Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Twenty sixth report from Session 2022-23 · published 24 Feb 2023
Recommendations & Conclusions
1
Conclusion
Acknowledged
On the basis of a Report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG), we took...
Conclusion
On the basis of a Report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG), we took evidence from the Department for Work & Pensions (the Department) on its 2021–22 Annual Report and Accounts and the level of fraud and error in …
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Government Response Summary
The government agrees and says it has committed to the target implementation date and will keep the Committee up to date on the progress of this via the existing TM25 recommendation.
HM Treasury
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21
Conclusion
Acknowledged
The Department told us it had included numbers in its Annual Report and Accounts for...
Conclusion
The Department told us it had included numbers in its Annual Report and Accounts for the savings from its efforts to reduce fraud and error. The Department’s 2021–22 Annual Report included an estimate for the impact of its activities to …
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Government Response Summary
The government published an estimate of £2 billion in savings from counter fraud efforts in the 2021-22 ARA and is committed to working with the NAO to ensure agreement on the framework for the 2022-23 ARA.
HM Treasury
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22
Recommendation
Acknowledged
As part of our previous examination of the Department’s 2019–20 Accounts, we recommended that the...
Recommendation
As part of our previous examination of the Department’s 2019–20 Accounts, we recommended that the Department should monitor and report any discrimination or bias caused by using artificial intelligence and machine learning on different claimant groups.41 In its response to …
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Government Response Summary
The government is committed to ensuring assurances and governance for data and analytics functions and is considering the best method on reporting this information to Parliament annually.
HM Treasury
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23
Recommendation
Acknowledged
We asked the Department about the degree of transparency that the public can expect to...
Recommendation
We asked the Department about the degree of transparency that the public can expect to have about how its data analytics and machine learning tools will work. The Department told us that this was a “challenging balance”. It cautioned that …
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Government Response Summary
The government is committed to ensuring assurances and governance for data and analytics functions and is considering the best method on reporting this information to Parliament annually.
HM Treasury
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29
Conclusion
Acknowledged
In our January 2022 report, we warned that, given the nature of underpayments identified, there...
Conclusion
In our January 2022 report, we warned that, given the nature of underpayments identified, there was a risk that similar, unidentified errors existed in the State Pension caseload.60 In 2021–22 the Department identified several new groups of pensioners potentially affected …
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Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the recommendation to work with HMRC to evaluate the extent of the HRP underpayment and provide a timetable for completion. Investigation is underway, but estimates of affected people and costs are not yet available.
HM Treasury
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