There was £6.4 billion of benefit fraud in 2022-23, including £5 billion in Universal Credit, £520 million in Housing Benefit claims, £180 million in ESA, £120 million in Pension Credit and £40 million in PIP
The Department for Work and Pensions is set to check millions of Universal Credit claims in new fight against £5bn fraud.
The Government aims to significantly reduce the amount of fraud and error in the next four years. Some 600 staff have just been recruited at new Government offices, according to Civil Service World, and comes after figures show there was £6.4 billion of benefit fraud in the 2022-2023 financial year ending this April.
It said the statistics showed the rate of overpayments due to fraud and error had fallen by 10 per cent over the past year. DWP teams tackling fraud include the Counter-Fraud and Compliance Directorate, which focuses on rooting out fraud and error at all levels, including serious organised crime, and investigates bogus benefit claims.
This team is also "providing intelligence on new and emerging ways to identify and prevent fraud and error from entering the welfare system so the Department can further strengthen its defences."
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