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Issue - meetings

CFEU Update Report (RIPA and IPA annual update)

 

 

Meeting: 25/04/2024 - Audit and Governance Committee (Item 272)

272 CFEU Update Report (RIPA and IPA annual update) pdf icon PDF 163 KB

Summary/Purpose

To provide the Committee with assurance over the counter fraud activities of the Council.  Direct updates will continue to be provided twice a year.

Work plans are presented to the Committee detailing progress and results for consideration and comment as the body charged with governance in this area.

The report also provides the annual update in relation to the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA), the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (IPA) and the Council’s existing authorisation arrangements.

 

Recommendation

That the Audit and Governance Committee resolves to:

1.         Consider the report and work plan at Annex A.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Head of Service, Counter Fraud and Enforcement Unit (CFEU) introduced the item.

 

The purpose of the report was to provide the Committee with assurance over the counter fraud activities of the Council. Direct updates would continue to be provided to the Committee twice a year. Work plans were presented to the Committee detailing progress and results for consideration and comment as the body charged with governance in this area. The report also provided the annual update in relation to the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA), the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (IPA) and the Council’s existing authorisation arrangements.

 

The report was a regular one presented to the Committee regarding the work of the CFEU, and the Head of Service provided the following key updates:

  • Due to the increased number of grants that the Councils are administering, the CFEU will be working on a verification and assurance toolkit to assist staff in ensuring fraud risk is considered and mitigated.
  • Work will be undertaken regarding the risks related to unauthorised dual employment where staff had additional employment that was not declared.
  • The CFEU team would be supporting the Publica review where needed.
  • A £5,000 grant had been received from the OPCC to support the build of a fraud awareness website on behalf of the Gloucestershire Multi-Agency Approach to Fraud (MAAF) group to advise and support residents, staff etc.
  • The housing waiting list had been reviewed to check for errors and fraud.
  • The Council had been inspected by the Investigatory Powers Commissioner's Office regarding activities and responsibilities under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA) and the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (IPA).  The Council had been found fully compliant.  A summary document around this legislation  would be distributed.

 

The Head of Service explained that the appendix had been presented this year detailing work for 2023/24 but the current year has been expanded and updated so that it acts as a service delivery plan / aide memoire of what the CFEU does and is responsible for.  In the future there will be more information in the reports rather than a list of work streams.

 

Members made a number of points on the report which were responded to by the Head of Service.

  • The CFEU worked to strict legislative standards, so they did not feel the need to use KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) to monitor their performance in terms of the number of cases investigated and outcomes.
  • The CFEU worked closely with the Internal Audit team, meeting quarterly to ensure their work plans were aligned and any internal control failings / risks were captured in any future audits.

 

RESOLVED: That the Audit and Governance Committee:

  1. NOTED the report.

 

 

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