More than 50 staff working for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) have been convicted of fraud worth hundreds of thousands of pounds in the past four years.
Figures released by the DWP revealed that fraud had cost the taxpayer £502,677 since January 2004.
This included fraud relating to all the benefits administered by the DWP, such as child benefit, theft of assets, and financial irregularities.
Some 14 staff were convicted of fraud between April and December 2007, costing £159,204.
The figures emerged in response to a written parliamentary question by Conservative MP Chris Grayling, shadow work and pensions secretary.
A National Audit Office report in July 2007 found about £2.5bn was lost to fraud and error in benefit payments over the previous financial year.
The DWP employs more than 100,000 staff, most of whom work for one of the delivery agencies: Jobcentre Plus, the Pension Service, the Disability and Carers Service, and the Child Support Agency.
