Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of full-time equivalent civil service roles other than Senior Civil Service were located outside London in each quarter from Q2 2020 to Q3 2023.

Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

Information on the number of roles, including those vacant, is not available centrally. Only the number of employees ‘in post’ is available.

The number and proportion of full-time equivalent civil servants employed and located in London and outside London between Q1 (March) 2020 and Q3 (September) 2023 is available in Table 1 below, and the number excluding ‘SCS level’ employees can be found in Table 2 below. This data refers to the number of employees ‘in post’ at each reference date. Information for Q2 (June) 2020 is not centrally available. Data has, therefore, been provided for Q1 (March) and Q3 (September) 2020.

Table 1: Number of Civil Servants in London and Outside London, Q1 (Mar) 2020 to Q3 (Sep) 2023

Sources and notes:

1. March 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023: Annual Civil Service Employment Survey, Cabinet Office

2. September/December/June 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023: Quarterly Location Survey, Cabinet Office

3. Figures include where grade is unknown/unreported

4. Outside London includes civil servants located overseas.

5. The increase in unreported location at Q2 and Q3 2021 is mainly attributable to around 7,000 Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) staff being transferred into MOJ (HMPPS) in late June 2021, with the majority being reported with an unknown location at Q2 and Q3 2021.

Table 2: Number of Civil Servants (excluding SCS level) in London and Outside London, Q1 (Mar) 2020 to Q3 (Sep) 2023

Sources and notes:

1. March 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023: Annual Civil Service Employment Survey, Cabinet Office

2. September/December/June 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023: Quarterly Location Survey, Cabinet Office

3. Figures include where grade is unknown/unreported.

4. Outside London includes civil servants located overseas.

5. The increase in unreported location at Q2 and Q3 2021 is mainly attributable to around 7,000 Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) staff being transferred into MOJ (HMPPS) in late June 2021 and with the majority of them not being reported with a known location at Q2 and Q3 2021.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of full-time equivalent civil service roles were located outside London in each quarter from Q2 2020 to Q3 2023.

Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

Information on the number of roles, including those vacant, is not available centrally. Only the number of employees ‘in post’ is available.

The number and proportion of full-time equivalent civil servants employed and located in London and outside London between Q1 (March) 2020 and Q3 (September) 2023 is available in Table 1 below, and the number excluding ‘SCS level’ employees can be found in Table 2 below. This data refers to the number of employees ‘in post’ at each reference date. Information for Q2 (June) 2020 is not centrally available. Data has, therefore, been provided for Q1 (March) and Q3 (September) 2020.

Table 1: Number of Civil Servants in London and Outside London, Q1 (Mar) 2020 to Q3 (Sep) 2023

Sources and notes:

1. March 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023: Annual Civil Service Employment Survey, Cabinet Office

2. September/December/June 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023: Quarterly Location Survey, Cabinet Office

3. Figures include where grade is unknown/unreported

4. Outside London includes civil servants located overseas.

5. The increase in unreported location at Q2 and Q3 2021 is mainly attributable to around 7,000 Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) staff being transferred into MOJ (HMPPS) in late June 2021, with the majority being reported with an unknown location at Q2 and Q3 2021.

Table 2: Number of Civil Servants (excluding SCS level) in London and Outside London, Q1 (Mar) 2020 to Q3 (Sep) 2023

Sources and notes:

1. March 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023: Annual Civil Service Employment Survey, Cabinet Office

2. September/December/June 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023: Quarterly Location Survey, Cabinet Office

3. Figures include where grade is unknown/unreported.

4. Outside London includes civil servants located overseas.

5. The increase in unreported location at Q2 and Q3 2021 is mainly attributable to around 7,000 Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) staff being transferred into MOJ (HMPPS) in late June 2021 and with the majority of them not being reported with a known location at Q2 and Q3 2021.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which legacy IT systems across Government were identified as red-rated by the Central Digital and Data Office.

Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

It would be inappropriate to release sensitive information held about specific red-rated systems within departmental IT estates, or information that could allow the assumption of which systems are at risk, as it could highlight potential security weaknesses.

The Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO), in the Cabinet Office, has established a programme to support departments in treating legacy. CDDO has agreed a framework to identify ‘red-rated’ systems, indicating high levels of risk surrounding assets. Departments have committed to have remediation plans in place for these systems by next year.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people verified their identity for GOV.UK One Login by (a) using the GOV.UK ID Check app, (b) answering security questions online and (c) visiting a Post Office in each month between August 2023 and March 2024.

Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Between 1 August 2023 and 26 March 2024, the number of users who successfully verified their identity through GOV.UK One Login is as follows:

The public expects quick, secure and user-friendly access to government services. Previously, UK citizens and residents needed to grapple with multiple sign-in methods and identity verification routes when using government services online.

GOV.UK One Login is replacing these duplicative systems across government with a single account and identity checking system. This will make it easier for users to access the services they need, reduce costs to government, and provide stronger protections against fraud.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Government has spent on in-person identity checks for GOV.UK One Login identity verification as of 26 March 2024.

Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

GOV.UK One Login’s face-to-face identity verification route went live on 25 July 2023. The Government Digital Service has, as of 26 March 2024, spent £778,064 on the contract with the Post Office to set up and undertake in-person identity checks.

The public expects quick, secure and user-friendly access to government services. Previously, UK citizens and residents needed to grapple with multiple sign-in methods and identity verification routes when using government services online.

GOV.UK One Login is replacing these duplicative systems across government with a single account and identity checking system. This will make it easier for users to access the services they need, reduce costs to government, and provide stronger protections against fraud.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people have contacted the gov.uk One Login customer support centre (a) by phone and (b) via the online contact form in the 2023-24 financial year.

Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The GOV.UK One Login customer support centre went live on 31 October 2023. Between that date and 25 March 2024 (inclusive), it has handled a total of 21,623 support calls and managed 12,585 support requests via online forms and emails.

From 16 April 2024, users will also have the option of using WebChat to seek support.

The public expects quick, secure and user-friendly access to government services. Previously, UK citizens and residents needed to grapple with multiple sign-in methods and identity verification routes when using government services online.

GOV.UK One Login is replacing these duplicative systems across government with a single account and identity checking system. This will make it easier for users to access the services they need, reduce costs to government, and provide stronger protections against fraud.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Government has spent on the GOV.UK One Login customer support centre in the 2023-24 financial year, as of 26 March 2024.

Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

GOV.UK One Login’s customer support centre went live on 31 October 2023. The Government Digital Service has, as of 26 March 2024, spent £926,443 to set up and operate this contact centre.

The public expects quick, secure and user-friendly access to government services. Previously, UK citizens and residents needed to grapple with multiple sign-in methods and identity verification routes when using government services online.

GOV.UK One Login is replacing these duplicative systems across government with a single account and identity checking system. This will make it easier for users to access the services they need, reduce costs to government, and provide stronger protections against fraud.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, updated on 29 February 2024, what steps his Department has taken to mitigate the risks of red-rated legacy IT systems.

Answered by Gareth Davies - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

I refer the hon Member to the answer given on 29 November 23 to PQ UIN 3658.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, updated on 29 February 2024, what steps his Department has taken to mitigate the risks of red-rated legacy IT systems used in (a) his Department and (b) HM Courts and Tribunals Service.

Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

We continue to assess our most critical services using the CDDO legacy IT framework. Now that funding has been secured, we are designing phased plans to mitigate risks for the red-rated services identified in the previous assessment. One of the red-rated services has had technical risks mitigated by being migrated to the MoJ's modernisation platform. Additionally, we are continually improving our overall risk management and mitigation approaches.

Within HMCTS, services have also been assessed against the framework, and we are continuing with the delivery of the Decommissioning and Legacy Risk Mitigation (DLRM) programme that is addressing these risks. DLRM is a SR21-funded, Government Major Project Portfolio programme specifically focussed on legacy system risks and is decommissioning, replacing, or moving them onto secure, modern, cloud-based environments.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, updated on 29 November 2023, what progress his Department has made on the development of a common mobile app strategy, framework and technical standards.

Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO) has convened discussions with Chief Digital and Information Officers and Chief Technology Officers from across government to identify key principles and guardrails for the mobile app strategy. The strategy will be finalised next year, as set out in the 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data.

Alongside this, the Government Digital Service (GDS) is developing a GOV.UK App that builds upon the success of the existing GOV.UK One Login identity checking app, which has been downloaded over 5.7 million times.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, updated on 29 November 2023, whether he will publish the Government Digital and Data Pay Framework.

Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Digital and Data Pay Framework is being revalorised to meet market trends for Digital and Data roles, ensuring the Government can attract the right talent for critical roles. It is an internal framework for government use that is not intended to be published externally to protect market sensitivities. 35 organisations have adopted the framework. This is shared directly with their Pay and Reward teams.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the rate of cloud adoption for each Government Department as of 27 March 2024.

Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO) in the Cabinet Office continues to work with departments to promote the best practice adoption of public cloud services, in accordance with Government Cloud First policy that has been extant since 2013. This was refreshed by CDDO in 2023.

The requested information relating to specific departmental adoption rates of public cloud is not currently centrally held.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, updated on 29 February 2024, when his Department first assessed each of the red-rated legacy IT systems in (a) his Department and (b) HM Courts and Tribunals Service to be red-rated.

Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

We completed an assessment of our critical systems against the CDDO’s legacy technology measures in July 2023, identifying the red rated system during that process.

HMCTS first assessed the red-rated legacy IT systems in October 2022 as part of their Decommissioning and Legacy Risk Mitigation (DLRM) programme.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, updated on 29 February 2024, when his Department first assessed each of the red-rated legacy IT systems in HM Revenue and Customs to be red-rated.

Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO), in the Cabinet Office, has established a programme to support departments managing legacy IT. CDDO has agreed a framework to identify ‘red-rated’ systems, indicating high levels of risk surrounding certain assets within the IT estate. Departments have committed to have remediation plans in place for these systems by next year (2025).

It is not appropriate to release sensitive information held about specific, red-rated systems or more detailed plans for remediation within HMRC’s IT estate, as this information could indicate which systems are at risk and may highlight potential security vulnerabilities.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department and its predecessor Department have taken to reduce the costs of fraud in the Department in the last three financial years.

Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) was established on 7^th February 2023. Prior to this date the portfolio for DSIT sat within the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS). The published BEIS Annual Report & Accounts provide a summary of counter fraud activity and respective costs related to fraud. The Cross-Government Fraud Landscape Annual Report 2022 highlights the latest available data relating to fraud and error across government.

Presently, as for all Government Departments, DSIT counter fraud activity is governed by Government Functional Standards for Counter Fraud, covering both proactive and reactive counter fraud activity, and set out by the Government Counter Fraud Function (GCFF). Adherence to standards is monitored and reviewed by the Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA).

In 2022/23 the PSFA set a target of delivering £180 million of savings to the taxpayer. In fact, the PSFA far surpassed this within the first 12 months by preventing and recovering £311 million. As it enters its second year, the PSFA has a target of achieving £185 million of savings for the taxpayer.

The Government has also announced an additional £34 million to deploy cutting edge tools and Artificial Intelligence tools to help combat fraud across the public sector, saving £100 million for the public purse. This is in addition to existing partnerships between PSFA and the tech sector.

The Government is determined to uncover fraud in the public sector and is proud of its record.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to reduce the costs of fraud in his Department in the last three financial years.

Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Since the establishment of the Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA) in 2022, the Department has been working closely with PSFA to implement the Counter Fraud Functional Standard framework, a common set of standards required by government departments to counter fraud, bribery, and corruption. To support compliance with the Functional Standard, the Department internally published its Counter Fraud, Bribery and Corruption Strategy for 2022-2025 to improve culture and awareness and build on the counter fraud activity delivered since the launch of DfT’s first strategy in 2019.

The following key activities have taken place to drive improvements in reducing fraud by improving detection activity, enhancing fraud prevention and building capability.

To support detection activity the department utilises Spotlight, a due diligence tool provided to departments by the Cabinet Office to help identify areas of risk and potential fraud and error. The department has also commenced a data analytics project utilising artificial intelligence to identify instances of fraud and error within high-risk spending areas. This initiative is providing comprehensive insights into fraudulent activities and errors that can be used to further strengthen controls and seek recovery of funds where fraud or error is identified. The Department’s contract management teams have furthermore increased their focus on fraud risks and detection, resulting in substantial sums recovered and returned to the Exchequer. Detected, prevented and recovered fraud is formally disclosed to the Cabinet Office who report publicly on these results across government in their annual Fraud Landscape Report.

On fraud prevention, a Fraud Risk Assessment (FRA) policy was introduced to enable accountable officers across DfT to take responsibility in ensuring that fraud, bribery, and corruption risks are adequately understood and effectively managed. The FRA process has been embedded into business-as-usual activity and has supported the department in identifying fraud risks, driving control improvements, and fostering continuous improvement in fraud risk management practices.

To build capability DfT has increased its engagement with the PSFA to enhance oversight, prioritisation of risks, delivery against counter fraud functional standards and sharing of best practice. We have increased our collaboration across the departmental group and across government networks to share lessons learnt, horizon scan for new and emerging trends and deliver collaborative best practice workshops, training sessions and awareness campaigns on areas of development e.g. risk assessment.

In 2023 and early 2024, DfT was one of the first departments assessed under the latest framework by PSFA for compliance against the Counter Fraud Functional Standard. The Department is now working with PSFA to take forward the recommendations from this review to drive further improvements in the Department’s counter-fraud function.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department has taken to reduce the costs of fraud in his Department in the last three financial years.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

We are committed to tackling fraud which is why in May 2022 the Department launched a robust plan to drive down fraud and error from the benefits system, alongside investment of £900 million that will deliver £2.4 billion of savings by the end of 2024/25. This plan includes proposed powers to require the transfer of data from third-parties, which has been introduced as part of the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill (No.2). This legislation is forecast to save up to an additional £600m over the Treasury scorecard period. The Department has set out a target to deliver £1.3bn in savings from our dedicated counter-fraud and error resource in 2023/24 as set out in the department’s Annual Reports and Accounts.

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department has taken to reduce the costs of fraud in his Department in the last three financial years.

Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

The Government is determined to uncover fraud in the public sector and is proud of its record.

As part of this, the Government established the Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA). In 22/23 the PSFA set a target of delivering £180 million of savings to the taxpayer. In fact the PSFA far surpassed this within the first 12 months by preventing and recovering £311 million. As it enters its second year, the PSFA has a target of achieving £185 million of savings for the taxpayer.

The Government has also announced an additional £34 million to deploy cutting edge tools and Artificial Intelligence tools to help combat fraud across the public sector, saving £100 million for the public purse. This is in addition to existing partnerships between PSFA and the tech sector.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, updated on 29 February 2024, what steps (a) her Department and (b) the Student Loans Company have taken to mitigate the risks of red-rated legacy IT systems.

Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)

The Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO), in the Cabinet Office, has established a programme to support departments managing legacy IT. CDDO has agreed a framework to identify ‘red-rated’ systems, indicating high levels of risk surrounding certain assets within the IT estate. Departments have committed to have remediation plans in place for these systems by next year (2025).

It is not appropriate to release sensitive information held about specific red-rated systems or more detailed plans for remediation within the department’s IT estate, as this information could indicate which systems are at risk, and may highlight potential security vulnerabilities.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department has taken to reduce the costs of error in the last three financial years.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

We are committed to tackling both fraud and error. DWPs quality assurance framework plays an important role in identifying common errors which contribute to over and underpayments. In addition, the department and HMRC has committed to provide assurance this winter over the integrity of the National Insurance records and how they interact with DWP’s benefit system.

The Department launched a robust plan to drive down fraud and error from the benefits system, alongside investment of £900 million that will deliver £2.4 billion of savings by the end of 2024/25. This plan includes proposed powers to require the transfer of data from third-parties, which has been introduced as part of the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill (No.2). This legislation is forecast to save up to an additional £600m over the Treasury scorecard period.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department and its predecessor Department have taken to reduce the costs of error in the last three financial years.

Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) was established on 7^th February 2023. Prior to this date the portfolio for DSIT sat within the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS). The published BEIS Annual Report & Accounts provide a summary of counter fraud activity and respective costs related to fraud. The Cross-Government Fraud Landscape Annual Report 2022 highlights the latest available data relating to fraud and error across government.

The Government is proud of its record in proactively seeking to find and prevent more fraud in the system. We have established the dedicated Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA). In its first year it delivered £311 million in audited counter fraud benefits.

Due to the Machinery of Government changes, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology have not yet produced fraud and error estimates, but this will be published in the 23/24 annual report and accounts.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to reduce the costs of error in the last three financial years.

Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department was recently requested to set out the steps it has taken to reduce the costs of fraud in the last three financial years: this response is provided in the Annex below. The Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA) defines the difference between fraud and error in relation to the dishonest intent of the individual or organisation involved in the incorrect payment. “Fraud” represents losses to the Department caused with intent by a counterparty. “Error” represents losses to the Department where intent cannot be proven. As the difference between fraud and error relates to the established intent of the counterparty rather than the activity itself, the Department has a single controls and assurance regime over fraud and error, which is set out in the Annex below.

In addition, the Department operates business-as-usual transactional and analytical controls to mitigate and detect risk of financial error caused by administrative errors.

Annex A – Parliamentary Question 22574 To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to reduce the costs of fraud in his Department in the last three financial years.

Response provided on 23 April 2024

Since the establishment of the Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA) in 2022, the Department has been working closely with PSFA to implement the Counter Fraud Functional Standard framework, a common set of standards required by government departments to counter fraud, bribery, and corruption. To support compliance with the Functional Standard, the Department internally published its Counter Fraud, Bribery and Corruption Strategy for 2022-2025 to improve culture and awareness and build on the counter fraud activity delivered since the launch of DfT’s first strategy in 2019.

The following key activities have taken place to drive improvements in reducing fraud by improving detection activity, enhancing fraud prevention and building capability.

To support detection activity the department utilises Spotlight, a due diligence tool provided to departments by the Cabinet Office to help identify areas of risk and potential fraud and error. The department has also commenced a data analytics project utilising artificial intelligence to identify instances of fraud and error within high-risk spending areas. This initiative is providing comprehensive insights into fraudulent activities and errors that can be used to further strengthen controls and seek recovery of funds where fraud or error is identified. The Department’s contract management teams have furthermore increased their focus on fraud risks and detection, resulting in substantial sums recovered and returned to the Exchequer. Detected, prevented and recovered fraud is formally disclosed to the Cabinet Office who report publicly on these results across government in their annual Fraud Landscape Report.

On fraud prevention, a Fraud Risk Assessment (FRA) policy was introduced to enable accountable officers across DfT to take responsibility in ensuring that fraud, bribery, and corruption risks are adequately understood and effectively managed. The FRA process has been embedded into business-as-usual activity and has supported the department in identifying fraud risks, driving control improvements, and fostering continuous improvement in fraud risk management practices.

To build capability DfT has increased its engagement with the PSFA to enhance oversight, prioritisation of risks, delivery against counter fraud functional standards and sharing of best practice. We have increased our collaboration across the departmental group and across government networks to share lessons learnt, horizon scan for new and emerging trends and deliver collaborative best practice workshops, training sessions and awareness campaigns on areas of development e.g. risk assessment.

In 2023 and early 2024, DfT was one of the first departments assessed under the latest framework by PSFA for compliance against the Counter Fraud Functional Standard. The Department is now working with PSFA to take forwards the recommendations from this review to drive further improvements in the Department’s counter-fraud function.

Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department has taken to reduce the costs of error in the last three financial years.

Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)

Details of measures the department is taking to prevent fraud and error are set out in the department’s annual accounts.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of civil service roles in the Commercial and Procurement Profession are vacant as of 28 March 2024.

Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The Government Commercial Organisation, is the employer of senior commercial professionals (at Grade 7 and above) within the Government Commercial Function. There are currently 101 vacancies within the Government Commercial Organisation against a budgeted headcount of 1649. This vacancy rate of 6.1% is similar to the 2023 Civil Service vacancy rate of 6.2%.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, updated on 29 February 2024, when her Department first assessed each of the red-rated legacy IT systems in her Department and in the Student Loans Company to be red-rated.

Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)

The Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO), in the Cabinet Office, has established a programme to support departments managing legacy IT. CDDO has agreed a framework to identify ‘red-rated’ systems, indicating high levels of risk surrounding certain assets within the IT estate. Departments have committed to have remediation plans in place for these systems by next year (2025).

It is not appropriate to release sensitive information held about specific red-rated systems or more detailed plans for remediation within the department’s IT estate, as this information could indicate which systems are at risk, and may highlight potential security vulnerabilities.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to reduce the costs of fraud in his Department in the last three financial years.

Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

The Government is determined to uncover fraud in the public sector and is proud of its record. As part of this, the Government established the Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA). In 22/23 the PSFA set a target of delivering £180m of savings to the taxpayer. In fact, the PSFA far surpassed this within the first 12 months by preventing and recovering £311 million.

As it enters its second year, the PSFA has a target of achieving £185 million of savings for the taxpayer. The Government has also announced an additional £34 million to deploy cutting edge tools and Artificial Intelligence tools to help combat fraud across the public sector, saving £100 million for the public purse. This is in addition to existing partnerships between PSFA and the tech sector.

Defra's headline response to countering fraud is set out in the Governance Statement of the Annual Report and Accounts. The Annual Report and Accounts for Defra for the past three years may be accessed here:

Defra Annual Report and Accounts 2020-21 (publishing.service.gov.uk)

Defra Annual Report and Accounts 2021-22 (publishing.service.gov.uk)

Defra Annual Report and Accounts 2022-23 (publishing.service.gov.uk)

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to reduce the costs of error in the last three financial years.

Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

Figures used in the cross-Government Fraud Landscape Report show the level of detected error across the group including arm’s length bodies. The figures for 2021-22 and 2022-23 may be found in the following reports: Annual Report and Accounts 2021-22 and Annual Report and Accounts 2022-23.

Steps we have taken are detailed in the annual report and accounts. These include creation of a dedicated grants hub with counter fraud expertise, fraud risk assessments, prepayment checks allowing correction of errors prior to payment, audits of both the control environment and delivery bodies’ counter fraud capability, external assurance, as well as governance forums which routinely consider the risk of fraud and error at both design and delivery stages.

The Government reports a combined fraud and error rate as it is difficult to disaggregate between the two, is cost intensive and may not be the most effective use of limited department resources. The choice is therefore left to the discretion of individual departments.

When found, error would be defined as losses arising from unintentional events, processing errors and official government errors.