![[UK] Up to £3.5bn furlough cash fraudulently or wrongly awarded](http://gpa.net/cdn/shop/articles/iStock-1242964414_1200x.jpg?v=1599573495)
The UK government has said that up to £3.5bn in Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme payments may have been paid in error or claimed fraudulently. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) reportedly told MPs on the Public Accounts Committee that an estimated 5-10 per cent of furlough cash has been wrongly awarded.
According to the latest available data, the furlough scheme has so far cost the government £35.4bn. Since March, the scheme has paid 80 per cent of the wages of workers placed on COVID-19 related leave, up to a maximum of £2,500 a month.
On September 7 Jim Harra - HMRC's permanent secretary - told MPs, "We have made an assumption for the purposes of our planning that the error and fraud rate in this scheme could be between 5 per cent and 10 per cent." He added, "That will range from deliberate fraud through to error."
HMRC and HM Treasury were ordered to appear before MPs to explain how they intend to reduce the problem. BBC News reports the story with further comments from Mr Harra.
The UK government has said that up to £3.5bn in Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme payments may have been paid in error or claimed fraudulently. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) reportedly told MPs on the Public Accounts Committee that an estimated 5-10 per cent of furlough cash has been wrongly awarded.
According to the latest available data, the furlough scheme has so far cost the government £35.4bn. Since March, the scheme has paid 80 per cent of the wages of workers placed on COVID-19 related leave, up to a maximum of £2,500 a month.
On September 7 Jim Harra - HMRC's permanent secretary - told MPs, "We have made an assumption for the purposes of our planning that the error and fraud rate in this scheme could be between 5 per cent and 10 per cent." He added, "That will range from deliberate fraud through to error."
HMRC and HM Treasury were ordered to appear before MPs to explain how they intend to reduce the problem. BBC News reports the story with further comments from Mr Harra.