The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has been granted sweeping new powers that could lead to Universal Credit claimants having their bank accounts monitored under a major new fraud crackdown.
What the new bill allows
The Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Accountability) Bill gives government departments the authority to request detailed financial information from banks about benefit claimants. This would enable DWP staff to conduct widespread checks on bank accounts.
However, MPs from across the political spectrum are raising serious concerns about the potential consequences of this "blanket approach" to surveillance.
Warnings from opposition parties
Liberal Democrats work and pensions spokesman Steve Darling has been particularly vocal in his criticism of the measures. He warns that the proposed system would enable "mass fishing" operations that could trap millions of innocent benefits claimants in unwanted investigations.
Mr Darling is calling for enhanced responsibilities for the independent reviewer regarding "proportionality and fairness" in how these new powers are implemented.
Neil Duncan-Jordan, a welfare expert, explained the scale of potential problems: "If the algorithms are scanning the bank accounts of 10 million people, an error rate of just one per cent will result in 100,000 cases where innocent people are wrongly investigated."
Concerns about vulnerable people
The Conservative Party has also expressed reservations about the government's approach. Party spokesperson Rebecca Smith stated her disappointment and warned that the proposal required proper assessment of "how the system is taking into account the additional needs of vulnerable people."
Mr Duncan-Jordan raised even broader concerns about the implications for society: "I'm concerned about what this Bill says about our welfare state, the danger of creating a second-class citizenship where welfare recipients have less civil liberties than the rest of us."
In response to these concerns, DWP minister Andrew Western sought to provide reassurances: "We're very clear that nobody vulnerable or otherwise should be debanked as a result of this Bill."
He emphasized that "We are baking in a human decision-maker at all points throughout the process" and that financial data sharing "does not imply any wrongdoing."
The Labour minister also stated that these measures would feed into established departmental procedures where "layers of support and specialist staff already exist to support those who are vulnerable or have complex needs."
