New Tough Government Rules for Welfare Cheats

Work and Pensions Secretary, Ian Duncan Smith, plans to impose a “three strikes and you’re out” policy for welfare cheats in UK. Does this mean that jobless fraudsters would be left with no income at all? The answer is “no”. The “three strikes policy” is a flexible measure, wherein the penalty would depend on the fraudster’s circumstances. Included here are whether the false claimant has a family to support and the extent of fraud. Simply put, false claimant can still be prosecuted while receiving some benefits.

This measure is part of a raft procedure from Welfare Reform Minister, Lord Freud. Freud wants to catch benefit and tax cheats, and cut the £192 per year social security bill. And as part of this overhaul, Smith plans to introduce a Universal Credit that will provide claimants of benefits in a single array. This streamlined system is hoped to prevent benefit cheats to prosper, helping the taxpayer to lessen their £5 per annum fine.

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