Surge in welfare cheats as Irish struggle to cope with ongoing recession
By: Daniel O'Carroll | Published Wednesday, December 28, 2011, 12:30 PM | Updated Wednesday, December 28, 2011, 12:30 PM
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| Joan Burton |
Ireland's social welfare system, colloquially known as 'the dole', is buckling under the strain of a never-ending economic depression, latest numbers show.
Startling figures appearing
on RTÉ.ie show that the number of reported welfare frauds has sky-rocketed from barely 600 in 2006 to over 16,000 this year.
That's an over 20-fold increase, and although not all of those reported can be assumed to have been 'cheating' the system, it's a safe bet that at least some of those reported were not unfounded.
Unsurprisingly the majority of claims were for 'working and claiming' -- those holding down a job while also drawing the jobseekers' allowance, but a substantial number - almost 4,000 - were thrown out due to 'lack of information' on the part of the reporters.
A whopping 40pc of the latest Budget was dedicated to social welfare and protection measures.
Appeals to the public to reported suspected 'welfare cheat', as they are unflatteringly called, have worked, according to government.
A report appeal along the lines of those commonly seen for insurance fraud has clearly had the desired affect.
Anonymous reports never form the sole basis for a cessation of payments, but are often the catalyst for an official investigation on the case file -- which evidently often yields the same results.
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Read more:A third of Ireland's expenditure goes toward social welfare paymentAre the Irish work shy?Irish government set to ban parents smacking kids__________________
A spokesperson for the Department administering the system said that the unsettling number of reports could be put down to a sense of 'fair play' among those drawing the support system reasonably, wishing to ensure that it was kept open only to those who really needed it, but in reality the figures speak equally loudly about the kind of endemic incoming shortages that Irish families are considering to face with the ongoing recession.
Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton has taken an unusually hard stand on the issue of social welfare.
She caused controversy this year by accusing some of purposely choosing to live a 'welfare lifestyle' rather than making any good-faith effort to find employment.
Her comments were rightly decried as insensitive at a time when job creation initiatives seem to be thin on the ground and lay-offs rampant, but there will be cracks in every system, and the Dole is no exception.
The Minister underscored that the number of anonymous reports represented a 'cultural shift' in peoples' perceptions of social welfare, and a growing disdain for those taking it unjustly:
"I think it is principally a feeling that, at a time when resources are limited, many feel strongly that those limited resources should be used for the benefit of people who need them most." she said.
10,226 of the 16,142 tip-offs came by email, followed by 5,000 phone calls, and 985 written letters.
5 Comments
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.citizen69 | Dec 29, 2011, 09:10 AM EST
While i can understand why some people would try to cheat the system, the government must act to eradicate benefit cheats. The ever increasing welfare budget must be spent on those who deserve it. There are many people on benefits which they are not entitled both North & South of Ireland. This extra burden gets put on the tax payer and hurts those hard working people on low wages most, many of whom see people on benefits with better lifestyles than themselves and wonder why they bother working. Of course we must go after the rich tax evaders also, no-one has a right to cheat when the rest of us have to pick up the tab.
sirpeter | Dec 28, 2011, 11:29 PM EST
I never met a rich person on welfare.Which tells me it's not very lucrative cheating.It's peasant cheating really.No!! there was much more lucrative cheating been done at that time.But we had a different name for it.It was called business.Boy did I do business.I'd never do business with peasants.They can never be trusted to keep their mouths shut.They are self righteous cretin's.Sell out their own kind for free they would.
sirpeter | Dec 28, 2011, 10:40 PM EST
Georgie Boy.I'd say you do a fair be of scamming yourself.
GeorgeDillon | Dec 28, 2011, 02:10 PM EST
A lot of these welfare cheats are Eastern Europeans. Stories abound of Poles who live in Warsaw, Gdansk or wherever, and who fly into Dublin every week or so to pick up their welfare check. And then there's the Romanians who live in England (why?) and come over to Ireland to pick up their Irish welfare to supplement their English dole. Parasites abound in the Ireland of today, both native and foreign.
LoyalCitizen | Dec 28, 2011, 01:28 PM EST
Absolute rubbish, just more propaganda........There are too many stories of Irish Politicians obscene financial arrangements in the press of late.......This tries to address the balance.........Most people in Ireland do not read up on law to identify those who are on social welfare and being fraudulent.......The truth be known the department is the perpetrator of fraud by using opinions and not evidence.........What corrupt politicians have is a press core in their pockets.