Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the level of fraud against the taxpayer has increased fourfold. In 2020–21 alone, there were losses of between £33.2 billion and £58 billion to fraud and error unrelated to the ongoing pandemic. In the latest Transparency International survey of public and business perceptions of corruption, the UK fell from 8th out of 180 countries in 2017 to 18th in 2022 for the perceived level of corruption. Perceptions of fraud and corruption in the UK are reversable, but the government must begin by demonstrating that it is serious about tackling these issues and regaining public trust. Senior officials across government must demonstrate leadership, set the tone from the top, build in preventative approaches to their operations and start to give the public the impression that they are serious about fighting fraud. The government can only start to tackle fraud properly when it is open about the scale of the challenge and where the problems lie.

https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/41288/documents/202816/default/