£5.8 billion lost to furlough fraud

The government lost £5.8 billion to fraud out of a total spend of £81.2 billion in furlough aid, according to HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC’s) annual accounts for 2020 to 2021. The HMRC states that its “estimate for the amount lost to fraud and error in the schemes during 2020 to 2021 is 8.7% in CJRS, 2.5% in SEISS phases 1-3 and 8.5% in the Eat Out to Help Out scheme. This is in line with the original planning assumptions that informed the design and operational management of the schemes.”

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/hmrc-annual-report-and-accounts-2020-to-2021