Mass crackdown launched on authorities bank cards as some bills ‘not justified’

Hundreds of presidency bank cards are being cancelled as a result of a number of the expenditure is “not justified”, a cupboard minister has mentioned.

Showing on Sky Information’ Breakfast with Wilfred Frost, Pat McFadden was requested if the crackdown on authorities procurement playing cards (GPCs) was as a result of civil servants are “fiddling their bills”.

Politics stay: What to anticipate from advantages cuts

He mentioned he would “not use that phrase”, however added: “I do not suppose a number of the strains of expenditure I’ve seen are justified.”

“So the method now can be, if individuals need to have considered one of these playing cards, they are going to need to justify why they want it and reapply for it.”

It was introduced final evening that hundreds of GPCs can be cancelled as a part of a crackdown on wasteful spending in authorities.

Beneath the plan, departments and their businesses have been instructed to freeze virtually all of the 20,000 playing cards in circulation in a bid to chop the quantity in use by at the least 50%.

Civil service cardholders can be compelled to reapply and justify that they actually need them. If they do not, their playing cards can be cancelled by the tip of the month.

Solely a minority of playing cards can be exempt from the mass freeze, comparable to these utilized by diplomatic workers working in battle zones.

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Guidelines to be tightened up

Mr McFadden mentioned the variety of playing cards and the expenditure “has grown enormously”, quadrupling “within the final 4 or 5 years”.

Figures present spending on the playing cards within the final monetary yr reached over £600m in central departments and core businesses – in comparison with £1.5m in 2020/2021.

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In some conditions, comparable to Overseas Workplace workers in hostile environments, the playing cards are justified as “it is probably the most handy strategy to account for small quantities of expenditure”, Mr McFadden mentioned.

The restrict on expenditure on the playing cards, which is at the moment £2,500, will come all the way down to £500 – with something above this requiring the approval of a senior civil servant, he added.

The crackdown on GPCs is a part of a wider drive to chop spending and waste throughout authorities, because the chancellor seeks to plug a niche within the public funds in subsequent week’s spring assertion.

Extra cuts to return

Rachel Reeves has misplaced £9.9bn of fiscal headroom (the quantity she might improve spending or reduce taxes with out breaking her fiscal guidelines) for the reason that October finances resulting from a poor financial system and geopolitical occasions.

Final week, it was introduced NHS England can be abolished as a result of there’s an excessive amount of duplication with the work the Division of Well being and Social Care is doing.

Well being Secretary Wes Streeting has since indicated he’ll look to scrap different health-related our bodies, whereas built-in care boards have been requested to chop their finances by half.

Later at this time the federal government is anticipated to announce measures to slash round £6bn off the hovering welfare finances, which might see some incapacity advantages decreased.