A father of eleven who claims up to £27,000 a year in benefits says he does not believe in contraception - and admits the government pay for the upkeep of his children.

Mohammed Salim and his wife Noreen claim up to £27,000 per year in handouts. He has not worked for 10 years.

Their family of 13 live in a four-bedroom house in Rochdale and often travel by minibus. Mohammed, who is appearing on a new TV programme, says on the show that he has no regrets about fathering 11 children, even though “it is the government who pay for their upkeep, food and clothing”.

“Having 11 children I don’t think is irresponsible, we don’t believe in contraception, we are following God’s first command, he said ‘go forth and multiply’,” he told Channel 5’s On Benefits: 26 Kids And Claiming, a documentary about large families on benefits.

Mohammed said it isn’t his fault that he has spent 10 years on the dole and the system is failing him, adding: “I have got qualifications and real work experience. I’ve been forced on to the dole because I’m unemployed.”

“I am expected to do at least seven job applications a week. I’m better off on the dole than working on a minimum wage.”

Can't find a job

Mohammed has applied to work as an ICT teacher in Saudi Arabia because he can’t find a job in the UK.

He said: “It’s a sad state of affairs. For the last ten years I’ve failed to get any jobs or interviews. I am not getting the results.”

“I have been told to do taxi work but with the hours I would have to put in to get a reasonable wage, I can’t do it, especially with young children.”

Mohammed, who spends up to £300 per week on food for his family, said he would struggle if his welfare bill was capped at £500 a week as the government are currently proposing.

He said: “We are feeding 13 people. £500 a week is not enough, the costs are there, we are having to stretch and stretch.”

Along with the weekly shop, he also forks out on modern gadgets for his children who want iPhones.

“They want that because it is the thing of the present day and you have to cough up,” he said.

He added that with 11 children, there are so many birthdays to celebrate as well as religious festivals.

“Virtually every month there is something going on, if it is not a birthday it is some kind of celebration, Christmas, Easter, Eid,” he said.

“It is a big pull on the little amount of benefits that we do get.”

But Mohammed believes that there are more important things than money.

“I am the richest man in the world with these children,” he said. “I have a big family, I am on benefits, there is a worry there but god always sees us through.”

On Benefits, 26 Kids And Claiming is on Channel 5 on Monday at 9pm.