Ministers have been urged to clamp down on a scheme that gives benefits claimants taxpayer-funded laptops, bikes and tools when they secure new jobs. Under the generous programme, some unemployed people are even being put up in Airbnbs at the public’s expense to help them back into the world of work.
Others have been handed gardening tools, tattooing equipment and train tickets costing hundreds of pounds by Jobcentre ‘work coaches’. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) insists checks are in place to ensure the expensive purchases made under the Flexible Support Fund - which cost taxpayers £68million in 2023-24 - are being used as intended.
However, it can be revealed that the department has recently introduced a new digital system to provide more oversight over the awards.
TaxPayers’ Alliance Reaction
Last night John O’Connell, Chief Executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: ‘Taxpayers will be absolutely livid that DWP is so blase with the public credit card. These frivolous freebies are completely unjustified. If they are vital for the jobs being offered, then they should be paid for by the company that is making the hire. If they are not, they can be purchased by the individual out of their own pocket. Ministers need to drastically reduce eligibility for these payments.’
Shadow Minister Comments
Shadow Cabinet Office Minister Mike Wood said: ‘Labour is handing out taxpayers’ money for luxury items whilst hardworking families are expected to foot the bill. The Flexible Support Fund is supposed to help people into work, not bankroll iPads, tattoo kits and Airbnb stays. Support should be focused on getting people into work, not funding personal wish lists.’
Details of Spending
Under the Flexible Support Fund, first set up in 2011, Universal Credit claimants can get their costs covered if they have a new job which they need to travel to or kit they need to start work, and cannot afford it while waiting for their first pay packet. Latest figures published by the DWP show that £23,635 was spent on payments in January alone using Government procurement cards.
Details obtained by the Daily Mail under the Freedom of Information Act show that this included two payments to holiday lettings website Airbnb, one for £826 and the other for £714. The DWP said they were both ‘to support a customer starting employment in a new area’ but that the smaller amount ‘has subsequently been refunded’.
Two payments totalling £2,000 ‘were for gardening equipment and PPE to support a customer to start employment’ while £959 went on ‘a camera to support a customer to start employment’. One jobseeker was given a £509 laptop from Argos while another got a £500 tool cabinet from Halfords.
In December, £620 was spent at ‘high end tattoo equipment’ supplier Killer Ink, £593 at a hair salon firm and £1,999 at a sewing machine company. In October, one person was given an iPad, keyboard and pencil from John Lewis costing £719 while another got a bike, brake lights, lock and mud guards worth £579 from Halfords. A further £653 was spent on a laptop from Currys along with £719 for a chainsaw from Screwfix and £1,080 on a hedge trimmer.
Government Response
In response to questions by the Tories in Parliament about what steps are being taken to prevent abuse of the scheme, minister Dame Diana Johnson insisted: ‘The Department has strong safeguards in place to ensure that equipment and technology funded through the Flexible Support Fund (FSF) are not sold or misused. Work coaches carefully assess each request to ensure it is reasonable, represents good value for money, and is necessary to support a customer to move into work, and that no alternative funding is available. After an award is issued, work coaches check that the item is used as intended and will seek an explanation - or consider repayment - if concerns arise, such as training not being attended. Independent post-award checks add a further layer of assurance.’
A DWP spokesman said: ‘The Flexible Support Fund is managed by Jobcentres to provide additional support to people - including purchasing goods or training - to remove barriers for those trying to move into work. While it is right that we support people into work, we have strengthened and enhanced transparency in spending by requiring evidence for customer spend requests and through introducing new security measures.’
