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In the newsletter this week...

  1. No, ‘illegal immigrants’ don’t receive more benefits than pensioners

  2. MPs cannot claim £50 in expenses for breakfast

  3. NHS diversity officers don’t all make £96,000

  4. Also this week...
Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) is a head-to-head debate between Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and the Opposition leader Rishi Sunak, as well as a chance for other MPs to question the PM. Today marks only the second time the two leaders have faced each other since the general election on 4 July.  

Full Fact has been fact checking PMQs in real time and has published a round-up of all the key claims. Some claims require more time than others and we will continue to update the content of the page as we complete our work.
Learn more...
In the meantime, if you see a claim that doesn’t look quite right please don’t hesitate to send it to us at [email protected] and we’ll take a look.
Best wishes, 

Craig, Digital Campaigns ManagerFull Fact
FACT CHECKS

No, ‘illegal immigrants’ don’t receive more benefits than pensioners

It has been widely claimed on social media that pensioners receive £6,000 a year in financial support from the government, and “illegal immigrants” and refugees receive £29,900 a year.

These figures are incorrect. Pensioners on the full ‘new’ state pension get around £11,500 a year in support from the government. People who do not have a legal right to be in the UK can’t claim public funds, though asylum seekers can get some other financial support, for example with accommodation. Like UK citizens, refugees (who have leave to remain in the country) are able to apply for Universal Credit and other benefits.
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Related:

MPs cannot claim £50 in expenses for breakfast

A false claim that members of Parliament can “claim £50 expenses for a breakfast” is recirculating on social media.

This is incorrect. MPs are only allowed to claim food expenses if they spend a night away from their constituency or London on parliamentary business, and this is limited to £25 per night away.
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NHS diversity officers don’t all make £96,000

Posts on social media have suggested the salary for an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) officer in the NHS is £96,000, and compare this to an NHS nurse’s starting salary of £28,400. But this comparison is misleading.

NHS diversity officers seem to generally start at around £25,000 in the NHS in England, but we’ve also found examples of roles that pay up to £81,000. The starting salary for an NHS nurse in England is £28,400 a year. While average nursing pay is around £38,000, the most senior nurses can earn up to around £114,000.
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