Getting tough on benefit fraud is welcome and overdue

Cracking down on benefit fraud has been promised many times over the years, so people may be surprised to discover that claimants do not necessarily have to prove that they qualify for payment. It is not a requirement to show bank accounts or statements to demonstrate that the savings criteria have not been breached.

When the Conservatives took office in 2010, they claimed Labour had presided over fraud amounting to billions of pounds and vowed to tighten the system. One obvious way to do this would be to make claimants show that they do not have enough money, but this is not done.

Under current rules, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) can request details of a benefit claimant’s bank account only if it suspects fraud is being committed. However, the law is to be changed to require banks to run regular data checks to spot potential fraud and hand the information over to officials.

There will be objections to giving the state access to people’s private bank accounts; but if they expect the taxpayer to fund their benefits, it is not an unreasonable request. Cheats should not be treated less harshly because they are on welfare.

Moreover, there are precedents: people seeking mortgages already have to provide detailed financial information to show they can afford to borrow. Why not to show you can’t afford to live without welfare? 

The DWP estimates its plan will save about £500 million over five years which is a drop in the ocean when set against an overall annual welfare bill of almost £300 billion. Ministers must avoid using a mouse of a measure to distract from the real elephant in the room, which is the need to reform the entire benefits system.