In its written evidence, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) drew attention to the Department’s response to our previous report on the BEIS Annual Report and Accounts.38 The ICAEW told us that the Department’s response did not acknowledge its overall responsibility, and that of the Accounting Officer in particular, on fraud recovery linked to Covid schemes.39 We asked the Department to reply to this point, which echoed Treasury guidance. Referring to Bounce Bac...

In its written evidence, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) drew attention to the Department’s response to our previous report on the BEIS Annual Report and Accounts.38 The ICAEW told us that the Department’s response did not acknowledge its overall responsibility, and that of the Accounting Officer in particular, on fraud recovery linked to Covid schemes.39 We asked the Department to reply to this point, which echoed Treasury guidance. Referring to Bounce Back Loans, the Department told us that it set out responsibilities of commercial lenders from initial checks through to recovery processes at the time the Type: conclusion | Number: 19 | Response status: not_addressed Government response: 5.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Recommendation implemented 5.2 Public bodies have a pivotal role in the delivery of departmental policy objectives. DBT has 19 bodies in its more immediate delivery chain which carry out a wide range o