Fraud, Error & Debt Bill

I am concerned that DWP investigators could overreach inappropriately into private matters that deny the basic dignity of benefit claimants; robust safeguards must be in place by the time the Fraud, Error and Debt Bill reaches its final reading in Parliament.

My Liberal Democrat parliamentary colleagues and I support measures to tackle benefit fraud, but any proposals need to be proportionate.

The previous Conservative Government tried to introduce measures via the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill that would have given the Government wide-ranging powers to look into the bank accounts of anyone claiming benefits, including those in receipt of the state pension. State pension fraud is low, and entitlement is not linked to either a person’s income or their savings.

My Liberal Democrat parliamentary colleagues and I were also concerned by the breadth of the provisions, which would have allowed the Government to demand access to individual bank accounts without grounds for suspicion. We believe that these powers should only be used when there are justifiable grounds for inquiry, and we determined that there was no reason for the Government to acquire this power.

Liberal Democrats voted against this change in the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill. That Bill subsequently fell and was not implemented because the General Election was called.

However, this new Fraud, Error and Debt Bill has reintroduced the possibility of overreaching powers being granted to DWP investigators. My Liberal Democrats colleagues are, as we were previously, against any such powers being implemented, and share concern over the risk of harm that these powers pose to benefit claimants, especially among the most vulnerable people.