Is 'benefit fraud' a serious problem for Britain?

Discuss. But first, some groundrules:

1. No name-calling or personal abuse.

2. No disruption (I decide what this is).

3. No trolls (that 'French' idiot is already blocked).

Provided you honour these rules you can say whatever you like, and I'll protect your right to say it.

not as much as tax avoidance...

It depends whose asking the question.  The Tories, via the tame media, make the issue of benefits a political football.  Their view, or at least the one that they portray, is that there's the 'deserving poor' and the 'undeserving poor'.  They use this ploy to undermine the welfare system as a whole, implying that the whole thing is being abused by people who don't deserve financial help.

Even taking their own figures, the percentage of fraud is tiny.  However, this minority is used to denigrate anyone and everyone who claims benefit.  It should be remembered that most people claiming benefit have worked and contributed heavily to society in taxes, national insurance and of course the profits they produced for someone else and the service provided.

I don't have the figures to hand and a while since I looked at them but I think it's safe to say that the amount of tax owed by the wealthiest in society far outweighs any amount of benefit fraud.  This is the real issue as far as the Tories are concerned.  They view benefit fraud is more important than tax fraud, proved by the fact that tax inspectors have been reduced in number.

To listen to this govt anyone would think that people on benefits live a sumptious and opulant life style.  Anyone whose ever had to survive on benefits knows that this is nonesense.  Anyone found earning a few quid to top up their benefits is publically humiliated and a stiff sentence handed out by the judge.  When tax cheats are found out they're asked to make an offer, and this is from people who can easily afford to pay their dues.

If the country was awash with well paid jobs, or people were given subsistance to study, then we'd all wonder why anyone would be on benefits.  The fact is that there's hundreds of thousands of people seeking work, quite often for bare minimum wqges.  Refusal to accept a zero hours job means that the person is sanctioned.  This is a nice word for 'starved' as nobody can survive on zero money in the city.

Then of course there's people who can't work due to health problems.  Some of these have never been able to work and others have become unfit because of hard work.  The Govt doesn't differentiate, they just take the money from everyone.

So, if the Govt can allow the £100billion+ to go uncollected, then why does it carry out such punitive measures against the poorest in society?  My reasoning says that benefit fraud isn't a serious problem but yet another folk devil, like Islam and immigration, to distract the masses from their ideological attack which aims to remove all the benefits brought to the UK by the post WW2 Labour Govt. Divide and rule, nothing new.

According to figures quoted in a parliamentary report, there are major misconceptions among the general public about the scale of benefits fraud in particular. It says a 2013 survey found Britons believe almost a quarter, 24 per cent, of all benefits were claimed fraudulently, 34 times greater than the official 0.7 per cent estimate.

The documents indicated that hundreds of thousands of people across the world were given help to conceal millions of dollars of assets. HMRC has reportedly been sitting on a list of 1,000 UK tax evaders for five years, yet only one person had been prosecuted.

there was another report from around the same time where it was estimated wastage from clerical error within DWP was higher than fraudulent claims...

People lose their benefits just for being a bit late, how they manage with no money isn't of any concern to the politicians, or the counter staff either.  Why is benefit fraud focused on so much when the figures prove that there'd be a far greater yield of cash if the tax dodgers were chased up? 

Why don't we have programmes on the tv exposing the tax cheats and showing the life style that they live and also showing the consequences of the lost revenue to society?  Could it possibly be a 'class thing', that they really don't care about the consequences of their actions?  Why do the media concentrate so much on the issue when corruption and scandals occur amongst the higher paid echelons so ofetn that we can't keep track of them?

Exactly.  I suspect that the people who think that living on welfare benefits is easy have been fortunate enough to have kept their jobs.  Maybe they've avoided shut downs, redundancies, closures or reductions in the workforce.  Maybe they live in part of the country not ravaged by Govt cutbacks or maybe they're just lucky.

We have in this country, whipped up by the media, an illusion that the people on benefits actually enjoy it.  The illusion blinds some people into believing that those on benefits have never worked, or are workshy.  They fail to understand that the level of benefits is so low that it's impossible to eat properly and keep warm.

  Long term reliance on benefits will mean a miserable life for most, with many falling into depression and suicide.  I've worked in many different parts of the country and the difference in affluence and poverty is staggering.  In some areas hundreds of people apply for just a couple of jobs on offer.

  I'd suggest before others criticise people on benefits then they should take a look at the rates of payments and ask themselves how anyone could manage on such a measley sum.  Oh, and being spoken to like you're a piece of dirt by the creatures who work in the benefit agancies is maybe supposed to lift a persons spirits.  They're actually being paid bonuses to sanction and starve people.  Dunno 'bout anyone else but I'd say that was morally bankrupt.

Lol benefit fraud , bloody amateurs , watch how the govt commit fraud to see how much can be stolen        

Gordon Bowden exposes govt corruption for last 14 yrs , long vid v talky but learn ta       

Benefit fraud is no worse than fraudulent benefits.

It's the corporate fraud that's kept from the headlines by the cockroaches in the media.  They prefer to pick on the weakest like playround bullies. I'd love to know what questions are asked when they get interviewed for the job.  Maybe:

Are you from a wealthy background?

Do you support the establshment?

Are you prepared to forget all about investigative journalism?

"   "    "    "    "     "     "     "      "      "    telling the truth?

Are you prepared to write anything the editor tells you to?

I believe many people just accept eveything they read and hear in the corporate media, judging by the way they repeat parrot fashion the lies told in The Scum and The Daily Obscurer.   Sadly, some like to judge others, as though having a decent job entitles them to pour scorn on those that don't or can't get one.  It seems to give them pleasure having a go at the weakest, maybe it makes them feel superior.

The perception created by the media is that those on benefits have never worked.  I encountered this once first-hand many moons ago.  I'd saved up all year for a holiday abroad and had it all paid for.  Someone on the plane asked what I did for a living, and I said unashamedly that I was out of work. 

The cheeky bast1d had a go at me, said it was terrible that I was going abroad for my hols!  He got it full blast in front of the whole plane load of passengers. I explained loudly that the nature of construction work meant that most of us had short spells of unemployment before the next job.  It was as though he thought he was paying the measley amount of benefit  received, and the cost of my holiday, and that my contribution in taxes and insurance didn't count. 

Two more fella's in seats nearby said that they were in the same position.  So Mr Big Gob sat down looking very stupid.  Serves him right for repeating what he'd read.  If you read cr+p then you'll probably repeat it, especially if you want to believe it.

what gets me is if these frauds are known why  is labour esp corbyn quiet , its tnt this story re finchley and would possibly see the govt collapse if found guilty

Nah, you're wrong surely?  The Scum 'newspaper' and 'The Obscurer' insist that it's the poorest in society that cause all the problems and that's why they're being persuaded to die by hunger and hardship. It couldn't be the establishment figures stuffin' their pockets that's causing the problems, nah, not at all.  I know you're wrong Anuk cos the man on the tele said so!   It's those flippin' layabouts, scroungers, using our taxes for their lazy lifestyles.  One day more people will wake up to the gross, parasitic nature of our ruling class.

Social Darwinism still prevails.

Yes and no, I think.  The minority own everything and gives them an unjustifyable amount of power and influence; a bit like a baboon learning how to use a gun; it'd be king of the jungle.  The majority have developed very well, as technology has, and it isn't the 1% that discovered this, but ordinary educated people, the overwhelming majority.  The 1% are the parasitic layer who contribute little, but take a lot. 

In Darwinian terms I'd like to think that evolution would move society onwards, pushing aside current ideas and order that now hold society back.  Or put another way, if the human race survives for another few hundred years, I think they'll look back to this era with amazement at how advanced we are in some areas, and how bestial we are in others.  Nice not to have trolls on this thread btw like fb who you named, it means we can have reasonable debate.   Y'see folks, it can be done without hurling playground comments around!

yes riley its a known fact that turds float that might explain why rothschild windsor rockerfeller have risen to the top of the human gene pool

Teenage quadruple amputee told to prove he is disabled to ...

Sadly, all too common...

there was another case a year or two ago, a girl born with cerebral palsy, had been entitled to disability living allowance all her life, couldn't walk, couldn't talk, needed 24/7 care from her mother... turned 18 and had to claim benefit for herself (her mother previously did) only to find herself declared fit for work.

I know of dozens of similarly bonkers decisions

Bonkers to us maybe, but the agency receive massive bonuses for removing benefits from people.  As you're probably aware this had led to many deaths.  If there was any justice they'd be in court.