Debate contribution: Benefit Fraud and Error: Task and Finish Report

Debate contribution by Mr Gordon Lyons on 9 February 2026.

MLA

Mr Gordon Lyons

Party at the time

Democratic Unionist Party

Date

9 February 2026

Type

Debate contribution (made as a minister)

Business

Ministerial Statements

Heading

Benefit Fraud and Error: Task and Finish Report

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5369243

Read the official Assembly record

Text

My mission is clear: to deliver a welfare system that is fair, transparent and focused on those who need it most. In February last year, I stood in the Chamber, and I was categorical then in saying that welfare fraud is not just a financial issue; it is a moral one. That remains true today. Fraud is not a victimless crime. When individuals cheat the system, they are taking support from those who need it most. In 2024, 3·7% of benefit expenditure — a staggering £350·3 million — was lost due to fraud and error. At this time of significant budget constraint, we must call out benefit fraud, ensuring that public money is directed to our key services and not to criminals. In April 2025, in an early and visible signal of my intent, I reintroduced the departmental practice of naming those who had been found guilty in the courts. Since doing so, my Department has seen anonymous fraud referrals from members of the public rise to 9,857 at the end of January 2026 compared with a total year-end figure of 6,353 for 2024-25. It is clear that, as a result of my leadership on those issues, benefit fraud and error is now clearly on the public agenda. To the annoyance of some in the Chamber, I will keep highlighting the issue and keep it as a priority for the Department. I make no apology for doing that because those cases show shocking levels of dishonesty. Such cases include a 38-year-old woman who lied about her living arrangements to fraudulently claim over £76,000, or the 29-year-old man who gave false information about his living arrangements, disability and savings to falsely claim over £43,000. Some fraudsters do not even live here, like the person whose £35,000 fraud funded a life in the Philippines. I have taken away the shield of anonymity from those who steal from all of us and lifted the silence on the corrosive impact of those fraudulent activities. The response from the public to shining a light on those stories has been overwhelmingly positive. That has fuelled my determination not just to root out those committing fraud but to step up our efforts to deter anyone who may be considering going down that path. By the end of December 2025, 497 criminal investigations into benefit fraud had been concluded. From 1 April 2025 to 6 February 2026, 57 prosecutions had been made as a direct result of the relentless investigatory work of my Department. In 2025-26, £16·7 million will be spent on bearing down on fraud and error through existing counter-fraud activity across my Department. The Department also undertakes debt recovery work to identify and recover overpayments, whether caused by fraud, error or changes in circumstances, and manages repayment in a fair and proportionate way. Up until 31 December 2025, that had resulted in a total recovery of £638,636. The Department continually assesses the value and impact of fraud and error work. That includes routine monitoring of operational performance, recovery levels and wider preventative activity. The Department's benefit security teams, which lead on all counter-fraud activity, also undertake quarterly reviews to ensure that resources are focused on areas of highest risk. It is important to be clear that fraud is a complex area in which fraud investigation is only one approach. We have dedicated risk teams and proactive interventions that help us to prevent and resolve issues at the earliest possible stage. To give examples, my Department reviewed over 16,000 universal credit (UC) cases up to the end of December 2025, correcting 2,072 UC claims and saving the Department over £10·6 million.

More than 5,000 employment and support allowance (ESA) cases were reviewed in the same period, correcting 677 ESA claims and saving the Department £2·5 million. As a result of compliance work in the Department, 2,654 cases were concluded up to the end of 2025, resulting in savings of £7·1 million.

We are seeing earlier identification of suspicious claims, better targeting of high-risk areas and more effective investigation outcomes. It remains my absolute priority to protect public money and to ensure that benefits go to the people who are genuinely entitled. However, we cannot be complacent, and we must stay ahead of the fraudsters. That is why, last year, I commissioned an in-depth internal analysis to critically assess current interventions and to make recommendations on robust measures to reduce levels of fraud and error. Today, I pay tribute to the task and finish group for its work. In developing its findings, the group drew on internal expertise, external insights and robust data analysis, supported by intensive stakeholder engagement and collaboration. That has given us a level of assurance that existing measures to reduce fraud and error are effective and commensurate. There is no doubt, however, that the historic underfunding of the Department in this area has significantly constrained our ability to scale fraud and error activity. The £16·7 million allocated to tackle benefit fraud and error in 2025-26 is insufficient, as the scale and complexity of the challenge before us is rising. Current allocations mean that we cannot maintain parity with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and bear down on fraud and error to the extent that, we know, we need to. We cannot stand still. Today, I am committed to accepting the recommendations in the task and finish report in driving forward work across four key areas. The first of those will be to enhance and expand current fraud and error activities. We will strengthen the validation of claimants’ declared circumstances. Linked to that, I want to see a ramp-up of investment in our benefit security and universal credit teams, with around 200 additional staff to help us to keep pace with DWP's counter-fraud activity. We will also strengthen specialist training and support for staff to double down on fraud and error, including mistakes made by officials. That will include the roll-out of a programme of education and guidance on fraud and error indicators and reporting responsibilities, along with improvements to the visibility of outcomes across the Department. Our third action will be to maximise technology solutions in conjunction with DWP and other Departments at Westminster and locally to aid investigative efforts. We will continue to actively collaborate with government colleagues on shared fraud defence systems. For obvious security reasons and because of the highly sensitive nature of that work, Members will understand that I cannot say more on that at present. Finally, we will increase public understanding of benefit fraud and raise awareness of our zero-tolerance approach. Today, I have launched a new advertising campaign on radio, in newspapers and on social media, to highlight our work to identify and root out fraudsters. It is really important that there is no confusion here. The Department delivers a range of supports to those who are eligible, and I am clear in my support for meeting the needs of those who are genuinely entitled. However, those who are lying about their circumstances and claiming tens of thousands of pounds in benefits to which they are not entitled are fraudsters. I want the public to help us to identify that criminal activity and to support us in deterring anyone from going down that path. The benefits landscape is changing, with more people moving on to UC. Our world is also changing, bringing different societal behaviours, increased misinformation and emerging sophisticated technologies. I have set out a coherent, robust and comprehensive suite of measures to do that. However, I must be completely clear that a number of those measures, particularly those that involve increased capacity, are subject to funding bids. They simply cannot proceed without the necessary financial support, and, despite repeated and robust bids for additional resources in order to expand our counter-fraud and error operations, the necessary funding has not been forthcoming. Every delay in resourcing the work leaves our system exposed to fraud, undermines public confidence and risks diverting vital support away from those who need it most. We are stretching our teams to do more with less as the scale and sophistication of fraud continues to evolve. If we are serious about safeguarding public money, investment in counter-fraud activity must match our ambition and be treated not as optional but as essential. Generating a return of 8:1 on investment in 2024-25, the results achieved by my Department’s benefit security intervention teams demonstrate the positive value of investing in counter-fraud work. The return on investment cannot be denied, and I will continue to make the case to Executive colleagues for that funding on that basis. Regardless, I have not sat back. Where recommendations have not required additional funding, my officials have already prioritised actions that will deliver an early impact. Recognising my Department’s efforts to generate savings through tackling fraud and error, in agreement with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, my Department submitted a welfare fraud and error invest-to-save business case. I welcome the confirmation from the UK Government that they will work with the Executive over the coming months on ways to tackle welfare fraud and error in Northern Ireland and on funding options, including the potential to share a portion of resulting savings with the Executive. In line with the Fresh Start Agreement, I will seek a 50% share of the savings. However, the Executive must support the initial investment and the reinvestment of the share of savings generated in programmes that will support people with barriers to employment, particularly those with disabilities or health conditions. That is a key priority for me as it aligns with the Programme for Government goals to reduce economic inactivity; tackle poverty and social exclusion; and support inclusive economic growth across Northern Ireland. This work is about protection: protection of our welfare system, of public confidence and of the vulnerable individuals who rely on timely and accurate support. We know that fraud and error remains a significant challenge across all modern benefit systems. We are not complacent; we are adapting our approach as new risks emerge. We are investing as far as possible in improved technology, better analytics and training for staff so that we can continue to raise standards. We are modernising our processes to make them faster, more accurate and more responsive, because the public rightly expect a system that is both fair and robust. However, more investment is needed and quickly so that we do not lag behind. With additional funding, we will act robustly and with urgency to fully implement the task and finish group’s recommendations. My Department is delivering real improvements, but we recognise that there is more to do. We will continue strengthening the system, protecting taxpayers’ money and ensuring that support goes to those who truly need it. Let us reaffirm our shared commitment to ensure that the right money reaches the right people at the right time and that those who seek to exploit the benefit system are met with firm and fair consequences. I commend the statement to the House.

First, I welcome the fact that the Member said that he is committed to tackling fraud and error, because that has not always seemed to be what has come from his Benches and in some of the comments that he has made in Committee. It is right that we tackle the issue and that we put the investment in. Let us be clear: this is not about going after those who make genuine mistakes; this is about those who continually, deliberately misrepresent their circumstances. We will be fair, and we will be robust. Where simple mistakes have been made, there are ways in which they can be rectified. I am talking about making sure that we deal with those who consistently engage in something that is wrong and is defrauding the system. That money goes to tackle fraud and error, whether customer error, customer fraud or error in the Department. I do not have a complete breakdown of that money, because there are overlaps in how some of it is spent. Investigation of cases will show that some fall into more than one category. I am determined to make sure that we reduce that number, because, frankly, £350 million is far too much and would be spent better elsewhere.

I do not have a breakdown of those figures, but the Member will be aware that we have a significant number of people working on the issue, because there are consequences for us if we do not work on it. There are consequences in not keeping up with the Department for Work and Pensions, so it is important that we have in place the people who make sure that the system is run effectively and fairly. The Member makes a false comparison between the number working on this issue and the number working on the anti-poverty strategy: one is an operational area; the other is policy. If the Member is talking more broadly, I will say that hardly anything goes on in my Department that is not, in one way or another, done to help people to deal with poverty and its effects. I can provide those additional figures to the Member.

I agree with the Member. I was disappointed to hear a commentator say on the radio this morning that all we need to do is make sure that the system is less complex. We absolutely need to make sure that we have as simple and straightforward a benefits system as we can, but it is not the complexity of the benefits system that is the problem; it is the intent of those who want to commit benefit fraud. Yes, I want to see a welfare system that is fit for purpose, protects those who need it most and is a safety net for those who fall out of employment. I was struck by other comments on the radio this morning that our focus should be elsewhere. We can walk and chew gum at the same time. We can tackle welfare fraud and, at the same time, deal with poverty in other ways. I noted the lack of the same commentators coming on to the radio last week when we announced £150 million to deal with fuel poverty in Northern Ireland. We know the impacts that that has on our homes, but there were no radio interviews or social media posts about that announcement. The Executive should promote work not benefits as the route out of poverty. We want to get more people into work and need to support those who cannot work, but, surely, we should all agree that fraud is wrong and we should go after fraudsters, so that the money that they take that they should not have is spent on those who need it.

2,462 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 14:32 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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