Taxpayers should no longer foot the soaring bill for providing interpretation services at the department of work and pensions, according to Reform UK.
Combined translation and interpretation costs have increased by 155 per cent from just under £2.7million in 2019-20 to nearly £6.9million in the last financial year.
Rupert Lowe, a Reform UK MP, wants a halt to the spending.
He said: “Soaring translation and interpretation costs underline one key lesson – the British taxpayer is being taken for a fool. If you can’t speak English, and you expect benefits whilst residing in England, then I’m sorry, but the answer should be No. The taxpayer should certainly not be footing the bill in order to facilitate that process.”
But a spokeswoman for Migrant Help said people who may need a “helping hand” have much to offer Britain.
She said: “We know that people coming into the UK bring with them a wide variety of valuable skills and knowledge. From our experience, people who often had to overcome huge adversity are incredibly motivated, driven and resilient, and determined to learn fast and establish new lives to support themselves and their families.
“They might need a little helping hand at times, just like many others, for various reasons. We strongly believe they deserve our support as they build new lives in the UK.”
However, Alp Mehmet of Migration Watch described the increase of costs as “staggering”.
He said: “This government needs to get a grip, quickly.”
The cost of providing translations rose from £472,539 in 2019-20 to £677,614 in 2023-24. During this period interpretation costs rocketed from £2,219,613 to £6,195,053.
Reform’s Mr Lowe obtained the figures on translation and interpretation costs but said he could not get a breakdown of the nationality of benefits claimants.
The Government was invited to comment.
