Oral Answers to Questions

Nadhim Zahawi Excerpts

Monday 28th November 2011 Commons Chamber

The Secretary of State was asked—

[Nadhim Zahawi (Stratford-on-Avon) (Con)]

1. What steps he is taking to tackle benefit fraud in areas where its prevalence is high.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

15. What steps he is taking to tackle benefit fraud in areas where its prevalence is high.

[The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Mr Iain Duncan Smith)]

I remind my hon. Friends of our inheritance from the previous Government: fraud and error in the benefit system were at £3.1 billion and progress had plateaued since 2005. The joint strategy with Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs started in 2010 and included mobile regional taskforces to look at different areas. We are targeting claimants in high fraud areas with visits, phone calls and letters. One pilot has been completed in Birmingham and we have two more in Cardiff and Croydon. We will carry out evaluation once all three are completed. So far, since October, from case cleansing alone we have saved more than £100 million.

[Nadhim Zahawi]

I thank my right hon. Friend. Will he share with the House how many benefit fraudsters were actually prosecuted last year?

[Mr Duncan Smith]

We prosecuted almost 10,000 benefit fraudsters in 2010-11, up from 8,200 the year before. Of those, 86% were successfully convicted—[Interruption.] I would have thought that the right hon. Member for Birmingham, Hodge Hill (Mr Byrne) would like to keep quiet, because he has made one mistake already and is bound to put his foot in it again. We will push for the strongest possible sentences. In all cases, benefit fraudsters are required to pay back the money they have stolen.