Overview
- The Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Accountability) Bill has passed both Houses and is in final procedural steps before becoming law.
- Its Eligibility Verification Measure will let departments request limited banking data to spot incorrect benefit payments, including flags for savings above Universal Credit’s £16,000 capital limit.
- MPs in the Commons rejected by 268–80 a Lords amendment to expand the independent reviewer’s remit to assess costs and impacts on vulnerable claimants and access to banking.
- Critics warn of disproportionate, algorithm‑driven trawls of millions of accounts, citing that a 1% error rate could wrongly trigger about 100,000 investigations.
- Work and pensions minister Andrew Western says data checks will not imply wrongdoing, decisions will involve human oversight under a code of practice, and banks have cautioned that added reporting could impose significant compliance burdens.