Writing for The Telegraph, Iain Duncan Smith, the Work and Pensions Secretary, promises that his reforms will have saved taxpayers £50 billion over the course of the Coalition’s five years in power. The welfare budget forms the biggest part of public expenditure. The Government spent £166 billion on benefits and state pensions to more than 20 million people last year. However, £3.5 billion was “lost” to fraud and payments made in error, an increase from £3.3 billion in 2010.