PAC Covid loans report: unacceptable still no sign of the billions “mugged from taxpayers”

EMBARGO: 00.01 Wednesday 25th June

Responding to the Public Accounts Committee report which states that the Government has been “dangerously-flat footed” in recovering taxpayer losses from fraudulent Covid loans, Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said:

“Nearly a year after the Government announced its Covid corruption czar, it’s unacceptable that there’s still no sign of the billions of pounds that were mugged from taxpayers.

“The Conservative Party oversaw awful abuse of the public finances, essentially allowing a dodgy get rich quick scheme to operate at the expense of people struggling with the catastrophe of the Covid pandemic. But now under this Government, those people seem to be getting off scot free.

“Ministers cannot allow this situation to drift any longer. We must see real focus at the top of Government so that these people have to bear the full force of the law and these billions are returned to taxpayers pockets.”

ENDS