DWP needs overhaul to restore trust after carer’s allowance scandal, adviser says

Liz Sayce, who led inquiry into department's failures, distressed' at carers being blamed for running up huge overpayments

The Department of Work and Pensions needs a management and cultural overhaul if it is to restore public trust after the benefits scandal which left hundreds of thousands of unpaid carers in debt, a key government adviser has warned.

Prof Liz Sayce led a scathing review of the carer's allowance scandal, which found the DWP system and leadership failures were responsible for carers unknowingly running up huge debts, some of which resulted in serious mental illness and, possibly, criminal convictions for fraud.