Call to abandon lie detector plan

The TUC also claimed that the accuracy of technology involved in the trial had not been scientifically proven.

The trial will affect people applying for council tax or housing benefit in parts of London and could be rolled out across the UK.

Individuals will be told their voices are to be subjected to lie detection technology which compares a person's voice at the start of a phone conversation with any change in tone or speed of speech that may indicate someone is lying.

The TUC report, 'Lies, damned lies and lie detectors', said innocent people are just as likely to fall foul of the system as those making fraudulent claims.

The union organisation argued that some people did not get upset or flustered when telling a lie.

TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: "Ministers should think again and abandon any plans to subject benefit claimants to untested lie detector technology.

"Unfortunately, people for whom deception is a way of life tend to pass lie detector tests with flying colours while the scrupulously honest often fail.

"If people know that their voices are to be analysed for every blip and tremor, the danger is that genuine claimants will be intimidated into withdrawing their claims, or will have to wait ages for their money while they provide extra evidence.

"The use of lie detector tests seems to suggest that the majority of benefit claimants are fraudsters, when the overwhelming majority are honest. The Government needs to remember that it is not dealing with gangsters or mafia dons, but some of the poorest and weakest people in the UK."