Benefit fraud costing NI taxpayer £120m

A report by the Northern Ireland Audit Office has revealed that benefit fraud and error is costing the local taxpayer over £120 million.

Comptroller and Auditor General, John Dowdall described the figures, which are for the year 2002-03, as "unacceptably high".

The report on the accounts of the Depart of Social Development, revealed estimated losses of £121 million in Income Support, Jobseekers Allowance, Disability Living Allowance and Housing Benefit, as a result of errors by officials and customers as well as fraudulent claiming of benefits.

Less significantly the Department of Health Social Services and Public Safety had estimated loses of between £8.9 million and £11.1 million while the Department of Employment and Learning had "irregular expenditure" of between £1.3 million and £2 million.

The report records that estimated payments on signed Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contracts in Northern Ireland over the period 2002-03 to 2027-28 will be in the region of £666 million and that this figure is likely to increase as the province’s £2 billion strategic investment programme rolls out.

However, despite a call from the Assembly’s Finance and Personnel Committee in 2001 for the long-term spending implications of PFI to be made visible, and being a requirement of Department of Finance and Personnel guidance from 2000, the Audit Office found that no report on financial commitments had ever been made to the Assembly.

The Audit Office report highlights the action being taken by Treasury to increase transparency in relation to PFI in England and encourages the adoption of a similar approach in Northern Ireland.

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