Tackling fraud and error across the entire public sector
The UK government has focused on tackling fraud and error in government, from appointing a Covid Corruption Commissioner to recover public funds from companies that ministers say “took unfair advantage of government schemes during the COVID-19 pandemic”, to cracking down on the estimated near £10bn fraud and error in the welfare system.
This webinar looked at how the government can tackle fraud and error across the full scope of their operations, and across different public sector organisations through initiatives like the Public Sector Fraud Authority.
Join the webinar to find out how government is building capacity and capability to tackle fraud.
We discussed:
- How nations can measure the scale of fraud and error in their country – and how they can develop their plans to tackle it
- How to structure the public sector response to get the most effective action
- How governments can work together globally to tackle the problem of illicit finance
Panel
Rebecca Shea, Director, Forensic Audits and Investigative Service, U.S. Government Accountability Office
Rebecca is a Director in GAO’s Forensic Audit and Investigative Service (FAIS) team. She led the development of GAO’s Antifraud Resource and the first of its kind estimate the extent of fraud in federal programs. Rebecca oversees audits to identify fraud, waste, and abuse across a wide array of government agencies. These reviews frequently employ data analytics to identify indicators of fraud and feature GAO’s Fraud Risk Framework to assess agencies’ efforts to manage fraud risk. Her recent testimonies include discussion of COVID-19 fraud cases, insights for improving the federal response to fraud, and criminal and national security risks associated with obscured ownership in FAA aircraft registrations.
In her 27 years with GAO and prior to her position as a Director in FAIS, Rebecca served as a methodological expert in GAO’s Applied Research and Methods team and as Acting Director in GAO’s Physical Infrastructure team. Rebecca earned her doctorate in Sociology from Vanderbilt University.
Johnson Oluata, Vice President, Chartered Institute of Forensic & Certified Fraud Examiners (CIFCFin), Nigeria
Dr Johnson O. Oluata is a professional accountant and Certified Fraud Examiner with over 30 years of experience in public practice, business, and forensic accounting. He held senior leadership roles in the Mitsui Group, retiring as General Manager in 2003 before transitioning into accounting and audit consultancy. He has contributed significantly to anti-fraud practice through his involvement with the Chartered Institute of Forensic & Certified Fraud Examiners (CIFCFin) and served as a delegate to Nigeria’s 2014 National Conference, representing ANAN. His expertise spans taxation, audit, corporate governance, and transparency, with a strong focus on justice, ethics, and sustainable development.
Joshua Reddaway, Director of Fraud and Propriety, National Audit Office, United Kingdom
Joshua Reddaway is the Director of Fraud and Propriety at the National Audit Office (NAO), where his role includes overseeing reports to Parliament on fraud, propriety and transparency; leading the NAO Fraud and Propriety Centre; and supporting colleagues as they encounter fraud, propriety and corruption issues in their value for money and financial audits of government. He is also the Client Director for Energy Security and Net Zero value for money work.
Prior to taking up these roles, Joshua was NAO Client Director for Work & Pensions value for money, where his work covered employment support, benefits transformation, systemic underpayments and fraud and error; and the Head of Practice for the NAO Commercial and Contracting hub, where his work covered some of government’s most complex commercial arrangements, its management of its strategic suppliers, its efforts to improve contract management, and the fallout from the collapse of Carillion. Joshua is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants England and Wales. He joined the NAO in 2002 to undertake his accountancy training and specialised in value for money audit after qualifying. He studied Social Anthropology at Cambridge, Economics at Birkbeck, and an Executive MBA at the Bayes Business School. He is married and has two daughters aged 15 and 9.
Bryce Wolf, Director, Strategic Growth, Unit4
Bryce Wolf is a visionary leader who bridges the gap between technology and impactful change. With a deep understanding of how innovative tech solutions can drive organizational growth, Bryce specializes in crafting strategies that empower organizations to amplify their missions. His work is centered on leveraging technology to not only meet but exceed stakeholder expectations, creating sustainable, long-term value.
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Webinar chair: Siobhan Benita, Moderator, Global Government Forum
Siobhan was a senior civil servant in the UK with more than 15 years’ Whitehall experience. She worked in many of major delivery departments, including Transport, Environment, Health and Local Government. She also had senior roles at the heart of government in the Cabinet Office and HM Treasury, including supporting the then Cabinet Secretary, Lord O’Donnell, to lead work on civil service reform and strategy. Siobhan left to run as an independent candidate in the Mayor of London election. She subsequently joined her alma mater, Warwick University, as Chief Strategy Officer of Warwick in London and Co-Director of the Warwick Policy Lab.
