Ditched government projects lost taxpayer £6.6bn last year, watchdog says

The Guardian · 🇬🇧 public United Kingdom · May 22, 2026 · 631 words · By Tom Knowles

Government Waste Taxpayer Accountability Political Transition Costs

headphones Listen to the eFinder podcast briefing

Generate a natural audio summary of this story

Daily briefing

What to know about Government Waste

Cancelled government projects such as the Rwanda deportation scheme and the road tunnel under Stonehenge are wasting billions of pounds of taxpayer money a year, parliament’s spending watchdog has found.

Claims checked 7

Techniques found 2

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Center coverage

Left50%

Center0%

Right50%

2 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Why it matters

About £6.6bn was written off by government departments last year alone – state spending that did not achieve its intended objectives or create any value for the taxpayer, the public accounts committee said.

Common ground

The PAC said successive governments’ propensity to cancel projects after spending significant sums of public money was a “particularly egregious” example of poor value.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language, Appeal to Anger: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Government Waste story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that the money the government owed in various compensation schemes had reached £73.4bn by the end of the last financial year, an £11.8bn increase on the previous year?
How does this story connect Government Waste with Taxpayer Accountability over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/may/22/ditched-government-projects-los…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 2 propaganda techniques in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 80% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Appeal to Anger 70% confidence

Provoking outrage to bypass rational evaluation of an argument.

Why it matters: Recognizing appeal to anger helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 7 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

info Single Source 5

check_circle Corroborated 1

cancel Disputed 1

info

Claim 1: “the money the government owed in various compensation schemes had reached £73.4bn by the end of the last financial year, an £11.8bn increase on the previous year.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of general Wikipedia and World Atlas pages about the UK, with no mention of compensation scheme debts or the figures £73.4bn or £11.8bn.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The UK is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy [o] with three distinct jurisdictions: England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have thei…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_kingdom

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Jul 10, 2023 · Where is United Kingdom? The United Kingdom, colloquially known as the UK, occupies a significant portion of the British Isles, located off the northwestern coast of mainland Europe.
https://www.worldatlas.com/maps/united-kingdom

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Find out more about our bustling cities, striking coastal routes and inspirational outdoor adventures. Discover captivating attractions and unmissable experiences as we reveal the top things to do in …
https://www.visitbritain.com/en

check_circle

Claim 2: “The cross-party group of MPs analysed spending across the 17 main government departments, with help from the National Audit Office”

CORROBORATED

The Guardian report confirms the cross-party group of MPs analyzed spending across 17 departments with NAO help. Wikipedia confirms the existence and role of the UK Public Accounts Committee (PAC) as a select committee of the House of Commons overseeing government expenditure.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) is a committee of selected members of parliament, constituted by the Parliament of India, for the purpose of auditing the revenue and the expenditure of the Governm…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_Accounts_Committee_(Ind…

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Public Accounts Committee (Malay: Jawatankuasa Kira-Kira Wang Negara) (PAC) is a select committee of the House of Representatives in the Parliament of Malaysia. The PAC derives its powers from the…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_Accounts_Committee_(Mal…

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Committee of Public Accounts is a select committee of the British House of Commons. It is responsible for overseeing government expenditures, and to ensure they are effective and honest. The commi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_Accounts_Committee_(Uni…

+ 3 more evidence sources

info

Claim 3: “About £6.6bn was written off by government departments last year alone”

SINGLE SOURCE

The claim is explicitly stated in a Guardian article snippet found via web search, but no other independent source in the provided evidence corroborates the specific £6.6bn figure.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The Government of the United Kingdom maintains several intelligence agencies that deal with secret intelligence.The agencies are organised under three government departments, the Foreign Office, the H…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_intelligence_agencies

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — About £6.6bn was written off by government departments last year alone – state spending that did not achieve its intended objectives or create any value for the taxpayer, the public accounts committee…
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/may/22/ditched-gov…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — How much is the UK government borrowing? Government borrowing was £12.6bn in March 2026, according to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). This was £1.4bn less than in March …
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g2rky498wo

info

Claim 4: “the Department for Work and Pensions, where fraud and errors have persisted for 36 years and stood at £9.3bn in overpayments in its most recent accounts, excluding the state pension.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of general Wikipedia and World Atlas pages about the UK, with no mention of DWP overpayments or the figure £9.3bn.

travel_explore

info

Claim 5: “the Home Office registered a loss of £290m for the Conservatives’ Rwanda deportation scheme”

SINGLE SOURCE

While the Guardian snippet mentions the Rwanda scheme as a project wasting billions, the specific figure of £290m for the Home Office is not corroborated by the other provided evidence (Wikipedia entries discuss the plan generally but not this specific loss figure).

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Act 2024 (c. 8) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The act seeks to deter unlawful migration, particularly by unsafe and illegal routes, …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safety_of_Rwanda_(Asylum_and_I…

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2025 UK refugee plan is a proposed change to the United Kingdom's asylum and immigration system. The plan was announced and led by the home secretary, Shabana Mahmood, and presented to Parliament …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_UK_refugee_plan

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The UK and Rwanda Migration and Economic Development Partnership was an immigration policy proposed by the governments of Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak whereby people whom the United Kingdo…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rwanda_asylum_plan

+ 3 more evidence sources

info

Claim 6: “the Department for Transport incurred a £472m loss from cancelling eight road projects, including the planned A303 tunnel under Stonehenge.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The Guardian snippet confirms the A303 tunnel was a cancelled project wasting money, but the specific figure of £472m for eight road projects is not corroborated by other sources. Another source mentions £160m spent on the tunnel specifically, which does not match the claim's total.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The A303 is a trunk road in southern England, running between Basingstoke in Hampshire and Honiton in Devon via Stonehenge. Connecting the M3 and the A30, it is part of one of the main routes from L…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A303_road

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The A30 is a major road in England, running 284 miles (457 km) WSW from London to Land's End. The road has been a principal axis in Britain from the 17th century to early 19th century, as a major coac…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A30_road

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Stonehenge road tunnel was a proposed tunnel in Wiltshire, England, intended to enclose a section of the A303 beneath part of the Stonehenge World Heritage Site. Various proposals for a tunnel, ai…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stonehenge_road_tunnel

+ 3 more evidence sources

cancel

Claim 7: “The Ministry of Defence was one of the most wasteful departments, incurring a £1.6bn loss in the 2024-25 tax year through cancelling projects.”

DISPUTED

One source mentions the MoD cut £1.6 billion from its budget due to overspending on operating costs, whereas the claim asserts this was a loss from 'cancelling projects'. These are different financial justifications (operating costs vs. project cancellation).

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Ministry of Defence (MOD or MoD) is a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for implementing the defence policy set by the government and serves as the …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ministry_of_Defence_(United_Ki…

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) is a civilian special police force which is part of the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence. The MDP are tasked with protecting the UK’s Defence Community, capabi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ministry_of_Defence_Police

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ministry_of_defence

+ 3 more evidence sources

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.