§ Mr. LoveTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many cases of(a) fraud, (b) customer error and (c) departmental error have been identified by the Benefit Integrity Project; of those cases in which fraud is suspected how many have been referred to the Benefit Fraud Investigation Service; and what estimate her Department has made of the number in which there is a realistic prospect of a conviction. [35109]
§ Mr. DenhamThe Benefit Integrity Project aims to ensure that those in receipt of Disability Living Allowance are entitled to it. While it is right to check that740W people are receiving the correct amount of benefit, we are determined that those checks should be undertaken as sensitively as possible. Also, we should ensure all decisions taken as a result of the project are right. We have, therefore, acted to introduce an extra safeguard to improve the quality of, and confidence in, benefit decisions made by the Project.
The administration of this programme is a matter for Peter Mathison, Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to my hon. Friend.
Letter from David Riggs to Mr. Andrew Love, dated 18 March 1998:
The Secretary of State for Social Security has asked Peter Mathison to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question concerning how many cases of (a) fraud; (b) customer error and (c) departmental error have been identified by the Benefit Integrity Project (BIP); of those cases in which fraud is suspected, how many have been referred to the Benefit Fraud Investigation Service; and what estimate her Department has made of the number in which there is a realistic prospect of a conviction. As Mr. Mathison is away from the office on leave, I am replying.The BIP aims to ensure that those people in receipt of Disability Living Allowance are entitled to it and are receiving the correct amount. While the Project has, broadly, sustained the estimated level of incorrectness, it has not sustained the level of fraud estimated by the Benefit Review.The information is not available in the format requested. As at 31 January 1998, the BIP had identified 157 cases in which fraud was suspected, of which 49 have been referred to the Benefit Fraud Investigation Service for further investigation. These investigations are still ongoing. In the remaining 108 cases, fraud staff in the Disability Benefits Directorate decided that there was no realistic prospect of determining whether fraud had occurred and the files were closed without further action.Information in respect of customer and Departmental error is not routinely available.A monthly report covering a range of statistics can be found in the House of Commons Library.I hope you find this reply helpful.