In August 1986, Craig Gardner Consultants were commissioned to examine the major payment systems in my Department with a view to establishing where they were most at risk and to advise on cost effective measures to keep these risks to a minimum. The consultants submitted three reports containing a number of recommendations covering operational and organisational arrangements and about protecting the schemes from abuse. The final report was submitted in November 1987.
The main recommendations covered internal working arrangements and the manner in which services were delivered. In particular, the consultants recommended a greater emphasis on local service and control, the examination of identity issues and the introduction of new payment methods. Since then the Department has gone through a major reorganisation which has allowed for a more focused approach to fraud and control. This reorganisation included the establishment in 1991 of a regional structure, a dedicated control division in 1992 and the setting up of separate control units in each of my Department's scheme sections. There has also been an increase in the number of staff involved in control work generally.
Throughout the 1980s the rapid introduction of information technology facilitated the move from manual to computerised systems to support the administration of the Department's schemes and the elimination of cash payments in local offices. This allowed my Department to take a more focused, co-ordinated and effective approach to control of schemes by enabling data from a variety of sources to be cross checked and potential irregularities isolated and investigated.
The services operated by the network of local and branch offices have expanded significantly since the Craig Gardner reports. Claims for pre-retirement allowance and farm assist are processed locally and currently the one-parent family payment scheme is being localised. A facility is also available to register and to certify ongoing entitlement to claims for disability benefit. In addition, all applications for personal public services numbers, formerly the revenue and social insurance number, are processed through the network of local and branch offices. A comprehensive information service is also provided in these locations for customers.
There has also been an increased emphasis on liaison and co-operation with external organisations to support my Department's control activities. In this context, my Department has put an extensive legal framework in place to support the sharing of data with other prescribed organisations for the purposes of controlling the entitlement and payment of benefits. Information is obtained and acted upon on an ongoing basis from a range of organisations including the Revenue Commissioners, FÁS, the Health Service Executive and other Government Departments. For example, commencement of employment data received from the Revenue Commissioners and details of full-time registered day time students from third level institutions is matched against social welfare databases to identify cases where there is a possible overlap between the employment or college attendance period and the social welfare payment. Cases identified with open claims are referred to the relevant areas for investigation.
In addition, there is regular contact between my Department and the social security authorities in the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. The level of co-operation between my Department and all these organisations is kept under continuous review with a view to enhancing it where appropriate.
Another initiative involved the setting up of a joint investigation unit, comprising inspectors from my Department's special investigation unit and the Revenue Commissioners, to use their combined legal powers to ensure that employers comply with their PAYE-PRSI obligations and to identify customers working and claiming benefit. My Department's control strategy, published in 2003, is based on a four pronged approach to the control of schemes, namely, prevention of fraud and error at the initial claim stage, early detection through effective review of claims in payment, measures to deter fraud and the pursuit and recovery of overpayments.
The introduction of systematic risk analysis of major schemes is a key element of the approach to tackling fraud and abuse. Furthermore, surveys of schemes are undertaken to establish baseline levels of fraud and abuse and my Department is committed to undertaking at least two such surveys annually. All cases of fraud are considered for prosecution. A policy on prosecution was published in early 2003 which has resulted in increased numbers of cases being prosecuted. In 2004, 503 cases were submitted for prosecution compared with 405 and 245 respectively in respect of the previous two years.
