More than 40 per cent of the reports carried out on disability benefit claimants by the back-to-work assessor Atos are flawed and unacceptable, according to an audit commissioned by the Government.

Tracing agencies working on behalf of leading financial and legal companies used a 43-page ‘Blaggers’ Manual’ to train their staff

Stricter assessment for benefit claimants has led to a 'flood' of requests for GPs letters across the south east of the country

Callers to government departments paid £56m on higher-rate phone lines last year despite a drive to reduce their use, a report has revealed.

Comments come as benefit claimants have amount they can claim capped at £500 a week for the first time

Councils were faced with a four-fold rise in applications for a housing hardship fund in the month after the so-called “bedroom tax” was introduced, figures show.

Some working families will be worse off under Iain Duncan Smith's flagship Universal Credit - even though it was intended to encourage people back into work, according to research published today.

Carers are being forced to cut back on essentials such as food and electricity because of the so-called bedroom tax. Despite Government promises to protect them from the under-occupancy charge, one in six carers forced to pay it are falling behind on their rent and face eviction, research by Carers UK shows.

Astonishing claim from the millionaire welfare minister

Only one in 20 sick and disabled people on the Government's £5bn Work Programme have been found lasting jobs, new figures have revealed.

A comprehensive guide to spending cuts across Whitehall

Three out of four of the long-term unemployed taking part in the Government’s £5bn Work Programme have not yet started a job, according to figures published today.

Group of activists threatened to take legal action over proposed tightening of the rules, which would have left fewer people eligible for the top rate

Ian and Jason Fitzgibbon plotted to smuggle £6 million worth of high-strength heroin