Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Bill Report Stage: New Clause 21

What happened: The House of Commons voted on 29 April 2025 on whether to add New Clause 21 to the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Bill during its Report Stage. The clause was proposed by the opposition and would have added further provisions to the bill's existing framework for tackling fraud and error in public spending. The motion was defeated by 257 votes to 95, with the government successfully holding off the amendment.

Why it matters: The Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Bill is designed to give the government new tools to identify, prevent and recover fraudulent or erroneous payments from public funds. New Clause 21 would have added additional measures beyond those the government had already included in the bill. Its defeat means the legislation will proceed without those extra provisions, keeping the bill closer to the form the government originally proposed. The practical effect is that the scope of anti-fraud and public spending oversight powers remains as the government designed them, rather than being extended in the direction the opposition sought.

The politics: The vote divided sharply along party lines. All 225 Labour MPs and 26 Labour and Co-operative MPs who voted opposed the clause, while 90 Conservatives voted in favour alongside 4 Reform UK members, one Traditional Unionist Voice MP and one Ulster Unionist MP. This was one of several opposition amendments defeated on the same day, including on Amendment 11, New Clause 1 and New Clause 10, suggesting a sustained but unsuccessful Conservative effort to reshape the bill at Report Stage. The bill itself passed its Second Reading in February 2025 by 343 votes to 87, indicating broad initial support that has since fractured into more partisan disagreement over the bill's precise scope and powers.