Exclusive:'Staggering' staffing levels at Scotland's benefits agency revealed

In some cases, staff numbers in Scotland are 5200 per cent higher than equivalent offices at the Department for Work and Pensions, with claims the difference shows a “disregard” for taxpayers money at a time the Scottish Government has pledged to cut its civil service headcount.

Figures show an overall difference in staffing to administer three equivalent benefits as 200 per cent higher for Social Security Scotland.

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However, the difference soars to 5220 per cent higher for administrative staff working on Pension Age Disability Payment compared to DWP staff dealing with Attendance Allowance.

The SNP’s benefits agency has faced repeated criticism over ballooning costs since its inception in 2018.

A Social Security Scotland spokesman said the two agencies could not be compared as Scotland has built a “radically different” service.

But Claire Baker, Scottish Labour Social Security spokeswoman, called the figures “stark”, adding that they “raise questions for the SNP about their management of Social Security Scotland.

“It is right that we have a functional social security system, but it is not clear that these higher staffing levels are delivering a better service for Scots,” Ms Baker said.

“The SNP must ensure that Social Security Scotland is delivering good value for money and funding is being spent on those who really need it rather than bureaucracy.”

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Using freedom of information legislation, The Scotsman asked the Scottish Government and the UK Government for staffing numbers and grades for three DWP benefits and their devolved equivalents.

To account for population sizes, the DWP figure represents 90 per cent of that benefit for England and Wales and the Scottish benefit is 10 per cent.

Across each benefit at both executive officer and administration officer level, staffing numbers in Scotland are significantly higher.

The lowest percentage difference is 118 per cent - for executive officers working on Adult Disability Payment, which replaced the DWP’s Personal Independence Payment in Scotland.

The Scotsman also compared Child Disability Living Allowance, which was renamed Child Disability Payment when it was devolved to Scotland.

Overall, at both admin and executive level, Social Security Scotland has 256 per cent more staff working on its child disability benefit.

Nicola Sturgeon, while First Minister, championed the introduction of a new welfare system for Scotland, insisting it be a “radically different system built on dignity, fairness, and respect”.

Social Security Scotland has, however, faced criticisms that it is unaffordable and unmanageable.

Scottish Conservative shadow cabinet secretary for social security Alexander Stewart MSP said: “This exposes a staggering disparity between staffing levels at welfare agencies north and south of the border.

“It is another example of the SNP’s total lack of desire to rein in the ballooning costs of their government and disregard for how much this will be costing taxpayers.

“Staffing levels at Social Security Scotland have clearly ballooned far beyond an appropriate level at a time when Scots are already paying more in tax to fund the SNP’s rising benefits bill.

“Scots deserve a system that delivers value for money - not another SNP-run bureaucracy growing at an unsustainable rate.”

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The Social Security Scotland spokesman said that the Scottish agency, unlike the DWP, also gathers information on behalf of clients “including completing assessments, as people have told us that their experience with DWP private contractors felt inhumane”.

It is, however, understood that the DWP does also collect supporting documents on behalf of applicants.

The spokesman added: “Our headcount cannot be compared directly with DWP as we have deliberately built a radically different service based on people’s experience with the UK benefits system.

“Unlike the DWP, we also gather supporting information for people on their behalf, to make the process of applying for benefits less stressful and treat them with dignity, fairness and respect.”

In September, the social justice secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville admitted to The Scotsman the government had no plans for how it would recoup £36 million of welfare debt.

This newspaper told in August how Social Security Scotland was facing a black hole in public finances over the Scottish Government’s refusal to follow Westminster’s plans for a debt crack down.

The UK government plans to introduce new laws that will claw back overpaid benefits and fraud.

However, the Scottish Government is determined to go its own way - leaving it with no means to recover the missing millions.

Ms Somerville was called to Holyrood’s social justice committee to account for the decision.