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Stats reveal doubling of underpaid benefits

BENEFIT underpayments across Britain have almost doubled since 2011, according to official figures.

Last year more than 2,000 people were not given their full amount of benefits by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), up from 1,240 in 2010-11.

The SNP, which obtained the figures from the department, said the rise is proof that the Westminster government is failing on welfare.

Scottish Labour’s Mark Griffin said: “The attacks launched on our welfare state over the last few years by the Tory government have been horrifying and the roll-out of universal credit has been nothing short of a disaster.”

The figures also show that more than a third of the underpayments were due to staff error.

A DWP spokesperson said: “Nearly 97 per cent of benefits are paid correctly so error and fraud is low.

“When we make mistakes we work hard to sort them and any underpayments are paid in full as soon as possible.”

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