Petition against DWP’s plans for bank ‘mass spying’ powers nears 200k signatures
An online petition calling on the UK government to abandon plans for “mass bank spying powers” is nearing its target of 200,000 signatures as privacy campaigners slam new measures aiming to combat fraud.
The government will likely soon be able to check the bank accounts of state benefit recipients under new plans to torch out rising numbers of fraudulent claimants and reduce errors, which cost roughly £8bn per year.
The UK’s biggest banks would automatically flag suspicious activity to the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP), via continuous monitoring of accounts.
The government has said the measures would save taxpayers £600m over the next five years.
Morning Wire first reported concerns over the proposed amendments to the government’s data protection bill last November, with dozens of campaign groups and charities since warning of wrongful benefits suspensions if the measures pass through parliament.
Campaigners have accused the government of slipping through the new powers with “minimal debate” and aiming to “police the spending of the poorest in our society”.
A petition created by civil liberties group Big Brother Watch in January to stop the new powers has now gained more than 167,000 signatures.
“It will force banks to flag people who meet secret criteria to the government,” the group said.
“Everyone wants fraudulent uses of public money to be dealt with, and the government already has strong powers to check the bank statements of suspects.
“But this is a major expansion of government power that takes away our financial privacy like never before and does away with the presumption of innocence.”
Silkie Carlo, the group’s chief executive, wrote on X/Twitter: “If the Prime Minister were to stand in front of the nation and vow to constantly & repeatedly search the bank accounts of every one of us – the public would be outraged. Yet that’s what’s being smuggled into UK law right *now*.”
Legal advice commissioned by Big Brother Watch claims the proposals would likely breach privacy law by applying to bank accounts with “no reasonable grounds for believing a particular individual has engaged in benefit fraud or has made any mistake in claiming benefits”.
Under current rules, the DWP only has the right to request a named claimant’s bank account details if it suspects fraud.
A DWP spokesperson told Morning Wire: “These changes do not allow direct access to bank accounts.
“Instead, third parties will be required to share limited data with us only where it may help DWP to establish whether benefits are being properly paid in accordance with the rules relating to those benefits. The DWP will not be able to see how claimants or pensioners spend their money.”