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Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 29 Jun 1993

Vol. 433 No. 1

Written Answers. - Fraud Investigations.

Seán Kenny

Question:

131 Mr. S. Kenny asked the Minister for Social Welfare the number of officials who are employed by his Department to investigate fraud; and the average additional revenue they realised for the financial year 1992/1993.

The prevention of fraud and abuse and unwarranted claiming of social welfare is an integral part of the work of the Department of Social Welfare. Staff are continuously vigilant and all officers involved in the processing and payment of social welfare entitlements have a role in monitoring claims and the prevention and detection of abuse.

There are also specific units, which work at local, regional and national level within the Department, whose responsibility is to seek out and identify specific forms of abuse and to devise appropriate measures to counteract these. Their work includes carrying out inspections of employers in relation to their PRSI obligations, investigating cases of concurrent working and claiming of social welfare benefits, and monitoring on-going entitlements to social welfare payments. There are approximately 530 staff involved in this work. The work of these units has a positive and significant impact in preventing fraud and abuse and has been highly successful in bringing many employers into the PRSI system and in reducing black economy operation. Last year the total savings to the taxpayer as a result of these activities amounted to £84 million or about £158,000 per officer on average. However it should be noted that the savings per officer would vary according to activity, location, etc. It should also be noted that the savings figure does not include any element arising from the routine validation and checking of claims before they are put into payment.

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