Dear list members,
You may be interested in the following.
Posted on behalf of Jeremy Lonsdale, Director of Welfare & Work Value for
Money Studies.
DEALING WITH THE COMPLEXITY OF BENEFIT REGULATIONS
Examination by the National Audit Office
The National Audit Office (NAO), the independent body which reports to
Parliament, is undertaking a study examining the complexity of benefit
regulations. The background to the work is a recognition that the
complexity of the benefit system is a key factor impacting on the
performance of the Department for Work and Pensions. The NAO and the Public
Accounts Committee of the House of Commons (PAC) have commented on the
effect of complex regulations on many occasions, including in the context
of reports on fraud and error in benefits, levels of take-up of benefit,
and most recently, the quality of decision-making. Often linked to this has
been a call for simplification.
We are, of course, aware of why regulations are complex, and conscious that
simplification is easier said than done and would involve consequences and
costs. On the other hand, we are aware of work that the Department has done
to simplify some specific regulations and to try to reduce the impact of
complexity on customers. It is against this background that we propose to
undertake a study of how the department deals with the complexity of the
benefit system and to explore the factors which drive the complexity.
A scoping study is now under way. Assuming the study then goes ahead, it
would lead to a published report to Parliament in late 2004. The key issues
for the scoping study are:
(1) what are the effects of complexity on the conduct of DWP business;
(2) whether or not current regulations might be simplified without making
major changes in the policy impacts that are intended; and if so,
(3) what are the likely facilitators and barriers to introducing regulatory
changes in order to simplify.
As part of our scoping work we are organizing a series of discussions with
policy makers, front line staff, and others with knowledge and experience
of benefit regulations. We would like to arrange a discussion(s) with
interested academics or specialists in the field of welfare and benefits to
gain their perspectives on this broad and important subject.
If you would be interested in contributing to a discussion, or just finding
out more about this work, please contact Jeremy Lonsdale at the National
Audit Office on 0207 798 7412 or [log in to unmask]
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