The Scottish Government has been accused of “turning a blind eye” to benefit fraud after figures show a “pitiful” number of claims were reported.
Figures obtained by the Scottish Conservatives through a Freedom of Information request found just 29 fraudulent cases were reported by Social Security Scotland (SSS) in the last two and a half years.
The data found there were two claims of benefit fraud made in the year 2023-2024, 12 in 2024-2025 and 15 so far in 2025-2026.
This is despite nearly two million payments being made by the welfare quango in relation to Adult Disability Payment, Scottish Child Payment and the Funeral Support Payment in that time, the Tories said.
The UK Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) estimates around two per cent of benefit payments are made fraudulently.
The Scottish Conservatives said applying this figure in Scotland would suggest around 40,000 fraudulent payments were made since the start of 2023-24 – totalling an estimated £121million.
Shadow Social Security Secretary Alexander Stewart MSP slammed the “pitiful” number of cases reported.
He accused SNP ministers of letting down hard-working people who are paying increasing taxes to fund an “unsustainable welfare bill”.
Alexander Stewart MSP slammed the ‘pitiful’ number of cases reported
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“These pitiful figures tell us that the SNP are effectively turning a blind eye to benefit fraud,” he said.
“Hardworking Scots are facing ever-rising taxes to fund the Nationalists’ ballooning and unsustainable welfare bill.
“It’s a further kick in the teeth to them to learn that some of it is going to claimants who are cheating the system.
“The SNP’s quango should be pulling out all the stops to clamp down on benefit fraud. Its failure to do so is a complete dereliction of duty.
Figures from the DWP via the National Audit Office show billions of pounds in benefit overpayments are made each year
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GB News“The money which ministers are allowing to be squandered could – and should – be spent on cutting people’s bills or improving the frontline services which are in crisis after 18 years of SNP mismanagement.”
The SSS said all suspected fraud cases are “taken seriously”.
“A very small minority of people may seek to abuse the system for financial gain,” a spokesman said.
“We investigate all allegations of fraud and, where appropriate, submit evidence to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal.
“Over the last year, our fraud and error teams identified and corrected more than £9million of overpayments, with almost £3million of future losses prevented.”