Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions he has had with the (a) National Police Chiefs Council and (b) Police Federation on expanding powers of arrest to DWP benefit investigators.

The Fraud Plan, published in May 2022, sets out the ambitions for the use of the Powers of Arrest for DWP staff when parliamentary time allows. This will be limited solely to use in DWP’s Economic and Serious Organised Crime investigations.

To date, DWP have engaged with the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) and the National Police Lead for Fraud in relation to this policy. We will continue to engage with NPCC and more widely with the police in developing this measure.

DWP plans to fully engage with the trade unions prior to the implementation of these powers.