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Written question asked by Lord Blencathra (Conservative) on Wednesday, 27 May 2015, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 10 June 2015. It was answered by Lord Freud (Conservative) on Tuesday, 2 June 2015 on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.

Terrorism: British Nationals Abroad

Question

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many United Kingdom nationals who have returned from fighting for Islamic State in either Iraq, Syria, or both, or are currently believed to be fighting for Islamic State in those countries, were or are in receipt of state benefits whilst abroad.

Answer

The information is not available. In order to be eligible to receive state benefits, eligibility conditions usually require a claimant to be resident in the United Kingdom. We have strict rules that are designed to prevent people taking inappropriate advantage of our benefit system to protect the taxpayer and the benefit system from possible abuse.

Claimants are required to tell DWP if they leave the country to travel abroad. If they move overseas without informing the Department then we investigate and can stop benefit payments.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
HL19
Session
2015-16
Subjects
British nationals abroad Iraq Social security benefits Terrorism Syria Islamic State
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk