Social Security Benefits

(asked on 5th March 2025) - View Source

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask His Majesty's Government what was (1) the total amount paid out for each benefit administered by the Department for Work and Pensions, (2) the total monetary amount of alleged fraud for each benefit, (3) the total number of prosecutions in each case, and (4) the total amount recovered, in 2023–24.


Answered by
Baroness Sherlock Portrait
Baroness Sherlock
Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This question was answered on 17th March 2025

Total estimates of benefit expenditure and estimates of fraud and error across all benefits can be found at: Fraud and error in the benefit system - GOV.UK

As outlined in DWP Annual Reports and Accounts 2023 to 2024 on page 103, there were 655 prosecutions but a breakdown by benefit is not available.

Debt Management Unit’s total recovery in 2023-24 amounted to £2.81 billion (excluding Housing Benefit recovered by local authorities but including £46 million Housing Benefit debt recovered by DWP), page 133 of the DWP Annual Reports and Accounts 2023 to 2024.

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