More than 150,000 illegal immigrants are said to be claiming benefits despite not having any rights to live in Britain

British government ministers have found that Labor allowed tens of thousands of people to wrongly qualify for sickness benefits and maternity pay – costing the tax-payer tens of millions of pounds. It is thought that most of the 155,000 abusers of the system did so by outstaying their working visas or managing to find employment without having any work permit. At present someone could be working illegally in Britain and be able to claim Employment and Support Allowance and statutory payments such as maternity or paternity pay and sick pay. This is because the Department for Work and Pensions has not asked to see work permits when assessing claims and employers have not been asked to prove those claiming benefits are working in Britain legally. The Government plans to crack down on the issue with the ­Welfare Reform Bill, expected to be introduced into Parliament shortly, which will ensure access to any of the benefits includes an entitlement to work in Britain.