Kemi Badenoch’s top team oversaw departments that lost £20,000 a minute to fraudsters

01 February 2025 , 18:00

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Kemi Badenoch’s top team oversaw departments that lost £20,000 a minute to fraudsters

New analysis reveals that since 2019, over £44 billion of taxpayer money was lost to fraud in departments under the Tories - often while they were run by members of Ms Badenoch’s Shadow Cabinet.

Departments which have been run by members of Kemi Badenoch’s top team handed £20,000 of taxpayers’ money to fraudsters every minute of last parliament.

New analysis reveals that since 2019, over £44 billion of taxpayer money was lost to fraud in departments under the Tories - often while they were run by members of Ms Badenoch’s Shadow Cabinet.

Some £35 billion lost to fraud and error in benefits payments at the Department for Work and Pensions, previously overseen by Badenoch’s pick for Shadow Chancellor, Mel Stride, from 2019 to 2024.

Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Helen Whately was a minister in the Department of Health and Social Care when it gave away millions to fraudsters in PPE procurement. The most recent statistics show that £324 million was handed to fraudsters.

Ms Badenoch and Shadow Trade Secretary Andrew Griffith were Treasury ministers when the department oversaw billions of pounds of fraud during the Covid-19 pandemic and in government research and development (R&D) tax credit schemes.

Analysis shows over £3 billion was handed to fraudsters via R&D tax credit schemes and £5 billion through Covid-19 financial support schemes, including Eat Out to Help Out.

Ms Badenoch herself admitted the Treasury under Rishi Sunak had "dismissed" concerns over fraud.

"We need to support people who do the right thing and not let those who don’t off the hook," she said during a leadership hustings.

"When we both worked in the Treasury myself and other ministers raised the issue of covid loan fraud. You [Rishi Sunak] dismissed us and it has cost the taxpayers £17 billion. Why didn’t you take us seriously?"

Some £42 million was lost to fraud in the Future Fund, run by the Department of Business and Trade - in which which both Ms Badenoch and Shadow Housing Minister Kevin Hollinrake have served as ministers.

And £770.8m was lost in Covid loan guarantees between 2020 and 2023.

A spokesperson for Ms Badenoch declined to comment.

Sophia Martinez