Gove faces questions from MPs over fraud inquiry

George Galloway, the Respect MP for Bradford West, has also tabled a series of parliamentary questions which include asking Education Secretary Michael Gove whether the case at Kings Science Academy in Bradford will lead him to change the way free schools are regulated.

The DfE carried out an internal audit into the free school earlier this year following allegations made by a whistleblower. Its investigation found it had submitted fabricated invoices to claim public money.

The report, dated in May, but only published last month, identified £86,335 of a lead in grant of £182,933 given to the school by the DfE which had not been used for the purpose intended.

It said invoices totalling £10,080 had been submitted for rent of an office even though the accommodation costs had been waived by the building’s owners.

The report produced by the Education Funding Agency (EFA), an arm of the DfE, had recommended the matter be passed onto the police.

When it was published last month, however, a DfE statement released at the same time said police had decided no further action should be taken, leading to questions from both Mr Galloway and Bradford East Liberal Democrat MP David Ward.

It emerged at the end of last week that when the DfE reported it to Action Fraud – the UK’s national fraud reporting centre – it was incorrectly logged as an information report rather than as one of potential crime.

A Home Office spokesman said the mistake by Action Fraud came to light last week. The DfE reported its findings to Action Fraud on April 25.

Since the matter became public West Yorkshire Police has launched its own criminal investigation.

The MPs have submitted a series of questions to Education Secretary Michael Gove about why the matter was not initially investigated by police and why the DfE failed to realise it had only been treated as an information report.

Mr Galloway said: “What we can be sure of is that a hugely-damaging report of financial irregularity which could not have been ignored by anyone who read it wasn’t acted upon by the police. The question is why? Was it given to them at the time? If it wasn’t then you have to question whether that was a cynical political decision because if it came out if would blow a massive hole in one of the Government’s flagship policies.”

A Home Office statement last week said the DfE had contacted Action Fraud by phone but did not say whether any written material was provided to support it.

When asked yesterday whether Action Fraud were given a copy of the EFA report a Home Office spokesman said if anyone making a report had any related documents which may assist they are told to hold onto them pending “police contact or investigation”.

Mr Galloway has also submitted a Parliamentary question asking Mr Gove “why the Department for Education failed to make any enquiry for at least six months about the progress of a police investigation into fraud allegations at Kings Science Academy which the Department for Education referred to the police service’s Action Fraud in April 2013”.

Coun Ralph Berry, Bradford Council’s executive member for children’s services, said: “Why when Action Fraud told the DfE that no further action was being taken did it not come to light that the matter had only been passed on to police as information? And why did DfE not ask any more questions about why police were not pursuing this given the seriousness of their own findings?”