Ministers have announced a £16.6m funding boost to help local authorities tackle fraud – following last week's Autumn Statement commitment to develop a pan-government Single Fraud Investigation Service (SFIS).

Addressing the Fighting Fraud Locally annual conference, Baroness Stowell, minister for local government, said the extra cash was ‘just the start in our continued fight against fraud'.

‘The government has worked hard to help local government and I want to see a renewed drive and commitment in tackling this problem,' said Baroness Stowell.

‘Local government fraud costs this country £2bn every year – money straight from the pocket of hard working taxpayers,' she said.

‘Councils must do everything in their power to ensure they recover this money and we will do everything in ours to help them,' Baroness Stowell continued.

The minister also said the Government would take action to ensure data-sharing between councils and the SFIS to facilitate joint investigations and prosecutions of fraudsters.

The DCLG has also vowed to work closely with the Local Government Association (LGA)  and councils to ensure the best powers, incentives and data are in place to tackle fraudulent activity.

Alongside the SFIS, communities secretary Eric Pickles last week wrote to council leaders pledging both the DCLG and the Department for Work and Pensions would invest in local government's ability to combat non-welfare fraud.

But the LGA's on the day Autumn Statement briefing warned the DWP's business case for a single, integrated fraud investigation service was premature.

‘The Department for Work and Pensions business case and evidence base for a single service is not robust and councils remain concerned that the creation of a new national organisation to tackle benefit fraud may jeopardise their efforts to tackle non-benefit fraud and retain local knowledge,' the briefing stated.