Department for Work and Pensions 2013-14 accounts
27 Jun 2014 02:32 PM
Full report: Department for
Work and Pensions 2013-14 accounts
The
Comptroller and Auditor General, Amyas Morse, has qualified his audit opinion
on the accounts of the Department for Work and Pensions owing to the material
level of fraud and error in benefit expenditure, other than State Pension where
the level of fraud and error is lower.
The
accounts of the Department, and those of predecessor Departments administering
this expenditure, have received similar qualified audit opinions since
1988-89.
The
Department estimates total overpayments due to fraud and error in 2013-14 are
£3.3 billion, which equates to 2 per cent of the total forecast benefit
expenditure of £163.9 billion. This has decreased from 2.1 per cent to 2
per cent since 2012-13, which the Department primarily attributes to the
removal of Council Tax Benefit from the estimate following its abolition in
April 2013. The Department estimates the total underpayments in 2013-14 to be
£1.4 billion, or 0.9 per cent of total benefit
expenditure.
Within those figures, the Department estimates that in
2013-14, fraud and error within State Pension resulted in overpayments of
£0.11 billion, which is 0.1 per cent of related expenditure, and
underpayments of £0.12 billion, which is 0.1 per cent of related
expenditure.
In
order to develop effective ways of reducing fraud and error in benefits
expenditure, the Department needs to understand properly how and why
overpayments arise in individual benefits.
According to the NAO, some benefits, mainly those with
means-tested entitlements, are more inherently susceptible to fraud and error
owing to their complexity, the difficulties in obtaining reliable information
to support the claim and the challenges of capturing changes in a
claimant’s circumstances. These more difficult to administer benefits,
such as Pension Credit, tend to be the ones exhibiting the highest estimated
rates of fraud and error.
In
contrast, the C&AG has again been able to issue a clear opinion on
regularity on the Social Fund White Paper Account 2013-14. This is because the
Department has achieved a substantial and sustained reduction in the level of
error for Social Fund benefits.
Notes for Editors
- The
NAO’s report on the Social Fund White Paper Account 2013-14 is available
on the NAO website.
- Press notices and reports are available from the date of
publication on the NAO website, which is atwww.nao.org.uk.
Hard copies can be obtained by using the relevant links on our
website.
- The
National Audit Office scrutinises public spending for Parliament and is
independent of government. The Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG),
Amyas Morse, is an Officer of the House of Commons and leads the NAO, which
employs some 820 staff. The C&AG certifies the accounts of all government
departments and many other public sector bodies. He has statutory authority to
examine and report to Parliament on whether departments and the bodies they
fund have used their resources efficiently, effectively, and with economy. Our
studies evaluate the value for money of public spending, nationally and
locally. Our recommendations and reports on good practice help government
improve public services, and our work led to audited savings of almost
£1.1 billion in 2013.