Tom Hayhoe appointed as Covid Counter-Fraud Commissioner
The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, has appointed Tom Hayhoe as Covid Counter-Fraud Commissioner.
Mr Hayhoe began his role on 3 December and will be in post for a fixed-term of one-year.
Mr Hayhoe will work across government to draw on the expertise in the Public Sector Fraud Authority, Government Commercial Function, and Department of Health and Social Care to use every means possible to recoup public money lost in pandemic-related fraud and contracts that have not delivered.
With an initial focus on PPE procurement, Mr Hayhoe will be empowered to scrutinise Covid spending and provide assurance that everything possible has been done to recover public funds in other Covid schemes including Furlough, Covid Grants, and Bounce Back Loans.
Mr Hayhoe will be reporting into the Chancellor and supported by a small team within the Treasury. At the end of his fixed term, Mr Hayhoe will provide a report to be presented to Parliament. This review will generate lessons and recommendations for government procurement in the face of future crises.
Mr Hayhoe has significant experience in health, scrutiny, procurement, and commercial negotiations. Previous roles include Chair of West Middlesex University Hospital (2010 to 2015), Investigating Committee Chair on the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s Fitness to Practise Panel (2012 to 2022), Chair of the West London NHS Trust (2015 to 2023), and senior positions at WH Smith and McKinsey.
Mr Hayhoe is also currently serving as Chair of the Legal Services Consumer Panel, as Chair of the Taxation Disciplinary Board, as an External Assessor at the College of Policing, and as a Disciplinary Committee Chair for the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.
Further information
About the appointment process:
Mr Hayhoe has been appointed following an open recruitment process. As part of this process, HM Treasury recruited an executive search agency. A panel comprising of Antonia Williams (Director General of Public Spending, HM Treasury), Mark Cheeseman (CEO, Public Sector Fraud Authority) and Sir Ian Andrews (independent panel member) interviewed a number of candidates and made recommendations to the Chancellor, which informed her decision.