§ Mr. DickensTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps are taken to prevent the misappropriation of the premium bond prize winners fund.
§ Mr. RyderThere is no scope for misappropriating money from the premium bond prize fund. Prize draws are carried out under the strictest security and are subject to scrutiny by the National Audit Office and the Department for National Savings' own internal auditors. Winning numbers are selected wholly at random by ERNIE and this machine has been so designed that it cannot be programmed to generate any particular number. Tests to verify the randomness of the numbers selected are conducted by the Government Actuary after every prize draw. Prize draws and the verification of prizes against valid bonds are subject to strict testing, checking and security procedures. The bonds and stock office carries out checks to ensure that prizes are paid out only to the registered holders of winning bonds. Prizes are paid from the National Loans Fund, for which audited accounts are presented annually to Parliament. Numbers of all winning prizes are published in a monthly supplement to theLondon Gazette and copies are available for inspection at main post offices.