UK taxpayers left footing bill as number of fraudulent Covid loans soars

Figures show that lenders flagged nearly 1.7bn of government-backed loans for potential fraud at end of June

UK taxpayers have been forced to cover a larger bill for Covid support to companies than expected, after fresh government data showed the amount of pandemic business loans flagged for fraud had jumped by 43%.

Figures released by the Department for Business and Trade showed that high street banks and other private lenders - which were responsible for distributing government-backed loans during the Covid crisis - had flagged nearly 1.7bn worth of loans for potential fraud at the end of June. That marks a 43% rise from the 1.1bn flagged three months earlier.