HMRC aimed to move more customers online thereby reducing staff costs but significant numbers of staff were let go before technical improvements were completed leading to a collapse in service quality in 2015. Services have since improved.
In November 2001, Customs produced estimates for the first time of the revenue loss from frauds on petrol and diesel. Customs estimated that in 2000 the loss could be between £450 million and £980 million in the UK, compared to revenue receipts of £22.6 billion on oils duties. Of this, diesel frauds on the UK […]
This report reviews developments in the sector and examines whether the Department, along with other departments with responsibility for local services, understands the impact of funding reductions on the financial and service sustainability of local authorities.
This report considers: the Motability scheme’s customer offer and performance; Motability Operations’ financial model; and the scheme’s governance arrangements.
This report assesses how well Ofwat, Ofgem, Ofcom and the FCA measure and report their performance in protecting consumer interests.
Online fraud is now the most commonly experienced crime in England and Wales, but has been overlooked by government, law enforcement and industry.
The welfare cap is encouraging a greater understanding of spending on some benefits and tax credits across government, but it is important that processes for managing the cap are reliable.
The Inland Revenue’s strategic partnership with Electronic Data Systems Limited (EDS) has been successful in helping the Department deliver significant changes in taxation policy to demanding timetables, Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported to Parliament today. The Department and EDS run the contract as a partnership, recognising the need for both […]
This report, our first on this subject, is a landscape review of the BBC’s commercial activities, setting out how the BBC organizes these activities and the key risks and challenges they currently face.
The amount of harmful business waste sent to landfill has fallen, but it is not possible to say how much of this reduction is down to a £240 million government programme, according to a National Audit Office report published today. The NAO was unable to conclude whether the spending was value for money because the […]
The National Audit Office has prepared this briefing on environmental protection for the Environmental Audit Committee. It is a follow up to the environmental protection briefing which the NAO prepared for the Committee in August 2010, and focusses on the progress made by the government in this area since 2010.
The NAO has conducted an investigation into DFID’s approach to tackling fraud, following an increase in the potential risks after the government committed to spend 0.7% of GDP on foreign aid.
The exact scale of fraud within government is unknown. The quality and completeness of fraud data is often variable.
On 15 January 2018, Carillion declared insolvency and the Official Receiver, an employee of the Insolvency Service, started to liquidate its assets and contracts. This report focuses on the role of the UK government in preparing for and managing the liquidation of Carillion.
By reducing the number of its offices and moving to a regional centre model HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) hopes to significantly reduce its running costs and modernise the way it works. HMRC’s original plan has proved unrealistic and is now reconsidering the scope and timing of the programme. Any changes will need to be carefully managed to avoid diminishing the long term value of the strategy.
The first sale of government shares in the Royal Bank of Scotland in August 2015 was well planned and organised and represented value for money.
It is important that the Government ensures its compliance programme reflects the changing risks within the labour market, and maintains its progress in ensuring all employers pay the minimum wage.
Local authorities have kept up levels of capital spending but face pressure to meet debt costs and maintain investment in existing assets.