16m a year

The Government is about to use complex computer software to beat sophisticated welfare fraud, saving an additional €16m a year alone on bogus dole claims. The Department of Social Protection reviews over 1m welfare claims a year.

It expects to save €510m this year in payments to bogus claimants.

However, a pilot predictive analytics programme has already helped detect nearly 50% more non-compliant jobseeker payment recipients than all other risk-profiling methods.