Neil Couling CB CBE
Biography
Neil was appointed Director General, Fraud, Disability and Health in November 2024, in addition to retaining accountability to Parliament as Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) for Universal Credit.
Neil’s career started in a local benefits office administering claims for Income Support. His subsequent roles have included:
- working in policy
- Principal Private Secretary to the Secretary of State
- several executive roles within Jobcentre Plus and its predecessors
- Director General for the Universal Credit Programme since October 2014
Director General, Fraud, Disability and Health and Senior Responsible Owner Universal Credit
In his role as Director General, Fraud, Disability and Health Neil:
-
leads the Fraud Error and Debt (FED) Programme alongside FED operational delivery and policy
-
leads the delivery of Disability Services
-
is responsible for the Health Transformation Programme which will transform DWP’s operational delivery for disabled people and people with health conditions
As SRO for Universal Credit he is accountable to Parliament for implementing the government’s main welfare reform programme. This includes:
- owning and communicating the vision of the programme
- ensuring the implementation of Universal Credit is completed safely and securely
- providing clear leadership to the programme team
Previous roles in government
-
Director General, Universal Credit Programme