DWP to get powers of arrest, search and seizure

Thank you for this information, DaisyAnne. At the moment my reaction is simply Gosh! Now planning tocheck out the gov website that you link specifies.

Below are the main points (as described by the government) from their report on fraud and error for 2020 to 2021. The "errors" include those made by the DWP:

3.9% of total benefit expenditure was overpaid due to fraud and error
The estimated value of overpayments was £8.4 billion
1.2% of total benefit expenditure (or £2.5 billion) was underpaid due to fraud and error
The net government loss, after recoveries, was £7.6 billion, or 3.6% of benefit expenditure
This year’s estimates have been affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic – see the full report for details.

NB: The state pension is the largest single item of welfare spending, making up 41 per cent of the total in 2020-21 (down from 43 per cent in 2019-20).

That's about the same reaction as I had Baggs. Any further information is going to help form an opinion.

I added the second post so we can see the relative amounts we are talking about.

Hmm, will it be applied retrospectively? I d love to see the government held to account for all the fraud they enabled when distributing the billions of pounds of financial “aid” during the pandemic…

That is very frightening, especially given the scale of incompetence that already exists in the DWP.

In principle I’m in favour of the DWP having the same powers as HMRC.

Which are GSM?

I think they are mentioned (well, alluded to) in para 4 of the OP, da.

My thoughts exactly FarNorth.
A friend of my Dil had a visit from them as someone told them she had a man living with her whilst claiming to be single.
They went through the house with a fine tooth combe,found nothing then just left,no apologies,nothing.
It made her quite poorly.

Germanshepherdsmum

In principle I’m in favour of the DWP having the same powers as HMRC.

HMRC use their powers very sparingly though.

Sounds like the criminalisation of being unemployed to me. A bit like the fines given to the homeless for trying to sleep in public.

Excellent news for those whose money is invested overseas.

Terrifying for those who are reliant on benefits to survive.

e.g. My friends, who made a claim for supplementary pension, were awarded it and over a year later told that it was a mistake by the DWP and they would need to repay it all in full. So, a large drop in income and a huge debt to be repaid, through no fault of their own.

I'll apologise now. I can feel rants coming on.

Decimate industry. Allow zero hours contract. Change the benefit system to one that leaves people hungry and unable to meet bills. Bleed the tax payer dry through embezzlement of taxes. And then allow the persecution of the unemployed/under employed.

Surely it would be better to spend the money ON the poor instead of hounding them?

*contracts

The Government has not issued a timetable for this apparently. (Source: Daily Mirror) It needs an Act of Parliament - but it’s thought this would only be introduced from May 2023 at the earliest. Just before an intended GE in 2024 perhaps?

I would like to see some actual fraud figures. Those we get always include the DWP and client errors, not just fraud. We need to see those errors separately for both for the DWP and their clients. This could simply indicate that the system isn't working. Better to spend money on simplifying and automating that than dashing for the red meat, I would have thought.

Granny23

Excellent news for those whose money is invested overseas.

Terrifying for those who are reliant on benefits to survive.

e.g. My friends, who made a claim for supplementary pension, were awarded it and over a year later told that it was a mistake by the DWP and they would need to repay it all in full. So, a large drop in income and a huge debt to be repaid, through no fault of their own.

That amount will have been shown under "fraud and errors" Granny23. I don't see how we can get a clear view of any issues when they do that.

Being poor is no excuse for theft from.the taxpayer.

Who has suggested it is Esspee?

Mind you I do think there are some in government who should be serving prison sentances for increasing the level of poverty we are expected to survive on if it gets to that point, and for increasing the numbers suffering from it.

sentences!

I know of one person who receives benefits but has a very considerable amount of inherited money held in cash (well in excess of the benefits threshold and not declared for IHT) and two bank accounts - one to produce when required and one kept secret. If you met the person you’d never suspect it.

Esspee

Being poor is no excuse for theft from.the taxpayer.

Oh but being rich clearly is, given the examples of our government. They nick far more than the poor too. All safely stashed off shore.

Germanshepherdsmum

I know of one person who receives benefits but has a very considerable amount of inherited money held in cash (well in excess of the benefits threshold and not declared for IHT) and two bank accounts - one to produce when required and one kept secret. If you met the person you’d never suspect it.

Have you reported them? Surely you should?

I was told about this in confidence and won’t be reporting it.