Staff fraud and theft cost government departments £4.3m in a year, an official report revealed today.
A total of 761 cases of internal fraud or theft were reported to 25 of the government’s 47 departments and agencies, according to the Fraud Report 2007-08.
The total cost rose from £3.85m in 2006, while the number of cases dropped by almost a third.
In one case, a worker fiddled more than £1m through false payments. In a separate incident, a senior manager misused his Government Procurement Card to the tune of £78,000.
‘Personnel management’ abuses uncovered included staff taking sick leave to work elsewhere, and employees misusing flexible working systems.
The report said: “While these cases are usually low-risk in terms of value, it is nevertheless important that departments try to detect them as staff who get away with this type of fraud may be tempted to attempt much more serious frauds.”
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