Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 March 2015 to Question 227614, if he will publish the Counter Fraud Committee's reports to the Audit Committee of the Highways Agency.

The reports form part of the internal control framework of the Highways Agency. The report of the Counter Fraud Committee (CFC) is a standing item on the Audit Committee (AC) agenda, which until recently were provided orally, given that the chair of the AC also attends CFC. More recently these have been provided as a written report to the AC to facilitate follow up questions from other AC members. Each year an annual CFC report is produced for the AC which informs the year end assurance report included in the Highways Agency year- end financial statements and report which are laid before the House. That report is therefore the most appropriate source of information about the control framework of which the work of the CFC forms part.

Highways England will be reviewing the Terms of Reference and internal reporting arrangements for its Counter Fraud Committee as part of the on-going process of review of its governance framework, risk and internal control framework as an independent company. The Framework Document provides that in doing so it will continue to follow Treasury guidance on tackling fraud.