Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to tackle people fraudulently claiming Personal Independence Payments.

DWP is committed to tackling fraud and error in the benefits system and to the recovery of debts, including those generated by Personal Independent Payments.

Working closely with counter fraud experts, the DWP has introduced measures to prevent fraud entering the system based on the types of cases and trends we have seen, for example:

- Strengthening the Identity and Verification Process to prevent fraudulent cases entering the system

- Introducing more rigorous checks for customers changing personal details, including bank accounts

- Delivering awareness sessions for Case Managers and Healthcare Professionals, reinforcing action to take when suspicious cases are identified, eg fake documents

DWP is delivering against key counter fraud activity, including investing in counter fraud professionals and building data analytical capabilities. The new Fraud, Error and Debt Bill will bring forward new measures to tackle fraud in the system. Details on the measures Government will be legislating will be presented to Parliament in due course.

More information on how the department tackles fraud and error across all benefit streams can be found here: DWP annual report and accounts 2023 to 2024 (HTML) - GOV.UK