Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Benefit Fraud

Monday 4 September 2023 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 3 Partly answered 0 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Department reduced fraud and error by 10% in 2022-23
  • Government investing 900 million to further reduce fraud and error
  • Targeted case review to examine hundreds of thousands of universal credit claims for fraud and error

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Mark Fletcher
Benefits & Welfare
Context

The MP asks about recent progress in tackling benefit fraud, a persistent issue that affects public finances and trust in social welfare systems.

Question

What recent progress has the Department made on tackling benefit fraud?

Answer from Mel Stride

We continue to bear down on fraud and error. It decreased by 10% in 2022-23. There is of course still more to be done, which is why we are investing £900 million to reduce that figure still further by £2.4 billion by 2024-25.

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Q2 Mark Fletcher
Benefits & Welfare
Context

The MP inquires about measures to address the increase in universal credit fraud and errors due to quick distribution during the pandemic, affecting public trust in benefit systems.

Question

During the pandemic, the Government rightly got support out to people as quickly as possible, but that inevitably meant that errors were made and some people took advantage of the situation. What is being done to clamp down on fraud and errors in universal credit?

Answer from Mel Stride

A huge amount, including the targeted case review, which over the next five years will review hundreds of thousands of universal credit claims to look for fraud and error. Of course, we use emerging new technologies for that purpose as well.

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Q3 Jim Shannon DUP Strangford
Benefits & Welfare
Context

The MP raises concerns about individuals unintentionally making errors in benefit applications that lead to unexpected repayments, seeking assistance for those facing such difficulties.

Question

I thank the Secretary of State for that answer. I absolutely support the principle that those who carry out benefit fraud must be made accountable, but what I find in my office—I think that others in the Chamber will probably find this as well—is that many people have filled in an application form, document or review and inadvertently ticked the wrong box. By doing so, they have left themselves in a very difficult position where they find that they have to make a repayment. Sometimes people need help at the initial stages to ensure that they get it right. What can be done to help those people so that they do not get into debt that they did not expect to be in?

Answer from Mel Stride

There is help within jobcentres. There is also Citizens Advice, and a help to claim process available there. When people make genuine errors and when they have been overpaid for various reasons, we are of course sympathetic, to ensure that we do not put them in a position where it is incredibly difficult for them to repay those amounts.

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