21 January 2000
They will be rewarded for implementing the government's verification framework, a series of checks when a benefit is being claimed. Money will also be available for successful prosecutions involving sums over £1,500.
The announcement, made last week by Social Security Secretary Alistair Darling, was welcomed by Malcolm Gardner, a member of CIPFA's fraud and corruption panel. He suggested that it could encourage councils to work together to tackle fraud.
'Groups of rural authorities would be far better off pooling their resources for prosecutions,' he said. 'There are not enough local authorities prosecuting fraudsters.'
PFjan2000
