View Image

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is soon set to start cracking down on benefit fraud by scanning bank accounts for suspicious activity.

From April next year, the DWP could have these powers to directly look at bank account details, meaning the soonest it could come into force is April 1st.

This will be done through the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Bill, with its aim to protect public money by slashing public sector fraud, error and debt.

Ministers have insisted the information gathered from such measures won't be collected on the presumption someone is already guilty of an offence.

Part of the Bills' sweeping powers includes financial penalties as an alternative to cases going to court.

Peers in the House of Lords are due to scrutinise the Bil

See Full Page