Department issues stiff warning to dole cheats
Those who inform get no financial rewards.
Investigations into workers ‘doing double’.
The Department of Social Protection has warned that anyone in receipt of the dole in Inishowen must ‘immediately’ inform Buncrana social welfare office as soon as they find work, whether paid or unpaid.
The warning comes after a series of investigations into alleged bogus claims across the peninsula in recent weeks.
One man, who contacted this newspaper, claimed that he is now ‘falsely’ under investigation after being ‘reported to the dole’ by an anonymous individual.
The Department moved to quash local reports that those who inform on others ‘doing the double’ receive financial rewards for their information.
“There is no system of reward in place for reporting suspected incidences of welfare fraud to the Department of Social Protection. As these reports are, in the main, received anonymously, the Department has no way of knowing who made them,” a DSP spokesperson revealed.
“The Department receives reports of possible fraud from members of the public in relation to the operation of its schemes through various channels, including a dedicated phone number and a facility on the Department’s website for this purpose,” she added.
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