The National Audit Office (NAO) says it is running a diversity-focused internship in summer that restricts eligibility based on specified characteristics. According to reports, the NAO’s National Audit Office programme allows applications only from candidates who are female, have black heritage, or come from lower socio-economic backgrounds. The arrangement is described as being linked to equality law requirements and is framed by the NAO as targeting groups that are underrepresented. The reports also say this approach excludes some applicants, including middle-class white men, from applying to the taxpayer-funded internship. The NAO’s position is that the initiative is intended to improve representation and opportunities for certain groups. The coverage highlights the eligibility criteria as the central issue, focusing on how the programme’s selection rules interact with equality law. The matter is being reported as a controversy over whether such restrictions are permissible under the legal framework governing equalities and public-sector hiring.