New Covid corruption chief to leave ‘no stone unturned’, Reeves warns
Tom Hayhoe has been appointed to to claw back taxpayers’ money wasted on deals during the pandemic.
The newly-appointed Covid corruption commissioner will “leave no stone unturned” as he investigates a “carnival of fraud”, Rachel Reeves has said.
Tom Hayhoe, a health policy expert, has been appointed to to claw back taxpayers’ money wasted on deals during the pandemic, the Chancellor announced.
He has started a review of £8.7 billion worth of PPE bought during the pandemic that was later written off the Government’s books.
Speaking at Treasury questions in the Commons, Ms Reeves told MPs: “Sound management of the public finances means spending wisely and not sending money to fraudsters. Today I have appointed the health expert Tom Hayhoe as our new Covid counter-fraud commissioner.
“As chair of an NHS trust during the pandemic he saw the urgency of getting PPE (personal protective equipment) to NHS staff when they needed it.
“Now he is at his desk in my department starting the work to investigate the billions of pounds lost to fraud and underperforming contracts and instead ensuring that money is where it belongs in our public services.”
Ms Reeves added: “Tom Hayhoe will leave no stone unturned in investigating the carnival of fraud that the previous government presided over, including in PPE contracts where they recommended that any attempts to reclaim that money be abandoned.”
Ms Reeves previously said she had ditched Tory plans to waive £674 million of the more than £1.2 billion of PPE contracts in dispute and that those deals will be assessed by the commissioner.
Mr Hayhoe has chaired NHS trusts and worked in corporate strategy and consumer marketing. He became chairman of the Legal Services Board’s consumer panel in May.
He will take on the part-time role of Covid counter-fraud commissioner for one year and be tasked with scrutinising contracts awarded during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The newly created position is part of Labour’s efforts to recover public money lost to pandemic-related fraud, error and underperforming contracts.
The commissioner will first focus on reviewing PPE contracts.
His appointment comes just days it was announced Sir Chris Wormald, the Department for Health and Social Care’s top civil servant, would be appointed the next Cabinet Secretary – the head of the civil service.
Downing Street faced questions about whether Sir Chris could fall within the remit of Mr Hayhoe’s review because of his role overseeing PPE during the pandemic.
But the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said the commissioner was instead focused on recovering money lost to fraud during the period.
“He’s looking at how to recoup the millions of pounds that were thrown away during the pandemic” the spokesman said.
He added: “The Covid inquiry is obviously looking in detail at the Government’s response to the pandemic, the Government’s management of the response, the running of UK healthcare system during the pandemic.”
The spokesman also said the new Cabinet Secretary, who is due to start his role on December 16, “contributed to managing the country out of the pandemic” and had “significant experience delivering across public services”.
