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The Latest Breaking News from Centrelink

Written submissions to Robodebt royal commission made public, revealing significant toll on victims of unlawful scheme

A 98-year-old widow called her care provider in tears, saying she did not have anything else to sell, a written submission to the Robodebt royal commission says.

ABC News

Department of Human Services bureaucrat ordered Robodebt letter system be switched off, royal commission hears

Former director at the Department of Human Services Tenille Collins says she had concerns with the Robodebt scheme's practice of sending welfare recipients a debt if they did not respond to a letter from Centrelink after 21 days.

ABC News

Public servant claims she was ‘screamed at irrationally’ after querying robodebt scheme

Official tells royal commission she was threatened with losing her job after turning off part of the system without approval

The Guardian - AU

From analysis to the latest developments in health,
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Former top lawyer denies seeking to withhold documents from coroner after robodebt victim’s suicide

Annette Musolino tells inquiry she did not withhold legal advice from her boss, the Department of Human Services secretary

The Guardian - AU

Robodebt made victim ‘feel like a cheat’, royal commission told

A robodebt victim has described how the botched program made him feel like a criminal and still affects his mental health five years later.

The New Daily

Former public servant avoids jail over JobSeeker fraud, magistrate accepts man was 'driven by need, not greed'

A former Commonwealth public servant will not spend time in jail for establishing a fictional Centrelink account in order to receive $4,000 in JobSeeker payments.

ABC News

Man issued with Robodebt bill of $11,000 tells royal commission he was made to 'feel like a welfare cheat'

A photographer who had a heart attack after being issued with an erroneous Robodebt bill says he was made to feel like a criminal.

ABC News

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Centrelink understaffing and delays having 'tragic impacts'

Centrelink needs more resources for staff and training, legal experts say.

The Canberra Times

Labor’s housing plan is a ‘turning point’ taking us in the wrong direction

The government calls its $10 billion package ‘ambitious’ — but it is uninterested in any meaningful action addressing the housing crisis.

Crikey

Ask the Expert: What is super really for? We break down the functions of your retirement nest egg

You do not need a financial adviser for your super. You can keep things simple, especially if investing in an industry fund.

The New Daily

‘Saddest part of my career’: Centrelink employee describes pain of implementing robodebt

Jeannie-Marie Blake says watching the royal commission into the scheme has been ‘triggering’ after giving evidence with striking frankness

The Guardian - AU

Robodebt inquiry: evidence contradicts witness’s claim he didn’t know unlawful method was being used

Former Department of Human Services official tells inquiry he can’t explain emails and other documents he saw referring to use of income averaging

The Guardian - AU

Inability to cool homes in summer heat making almost 90% of Centrelink recipients ill, survey finds

A third of those polled said they had sought medical care for heat stress while others who had air conditioning avoided using it due to cost of electricity

The Guardian - AU

Public servants may have ‘colluded’ to launch robodebt despite knowing it was unlawful, inquiry hears

Former deputy secretary Serena Wilson denies ‘reconstructing events’ in her evidence to the royal commission to protect her own interests

The Guardian - AU

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The Guardian - AU

‘I can’t forget’: frontline worker gives searing indictment of robodebt as architects of scheme due to give evidence

Centrelink employee told the commission she would never forget what staff were ‘forced’ to do to victims of the program

The Guardian - AU

‘Platitudes and false words’: mother of robodebt victim who took own life tells inquiry of government stonewalling

‘It all became very sly. Everyone was lying and covering each other’s backs,’ royal commission hears

ABC News

Government lawyers were told Robodebt's income-averaging method couldn't be used to calculate welfare debts, royal commission hears

The inquiry hears from a mother whose son took his own life after being targeted with dozens of phone calls, text messages from Centrelink and debt collectors chasing an alleged Robodebt.

The Conversation

Friday essay: parents of 9-month-old babies as 'workers in waiting'? How ParentsNext monitors single mothers

For the first two months of Svetlana’s daughter’s life, the pair couch-surfed and lived on the streets. Granted public housing, Svetlana then worked to “stabilise” herself and slowly form “new ties”. A “former addict”, she had been “clean and sober for six years”.

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The Guardian - AU

Afternoon Update: RBA boss defends job at Senate grilling; public school enrolments drop; and a sit-down with Lidia Thorpe

Philip Lowe tells Senate estimates interest rates will continue to rise, ‘but how far they need to go, we’re still unsure’

The Guardian - AU

‘Less than optimal’: Centrelink call wait times blow out amid staff shortages

Labor government blames Coalition for cutting the agency’s workforce by around 13% from 2016 levels

AAP

Centrelink faces staff shortage as wait times increase

Officials have told a parliamentary hearing economic conditions has led to a surge in demand for Centrelink, while the service is short by more than 500 staff.

The New Daily

Ask the Expert: Considering a gift or annuity? Here’s how it can affect your super

For people that like the income security, then purchasing an annuity with some of your funds might be appropriate.

The New Daily

Ask the Expert: Where to invest for retirement – property or super?

Putting extra into super or investing in an investment property both have advantages, and both have tax concessions applied to them.

ABC News

Taxpayer-funded review that found 'flaws' in Robodebt scheme was discontinued by Department of Human Services, royal commission told

In a deal worth almost $1 million, the Department of Human Services engaged a consultancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers to review the budget savings program, but then declined to see the end result.

Crikey

A third ex-minister denies robodebt responsibility, as Christian Porter to take witness stand

Alan Tudge has joined former Coalition government colleagues in denying knowledge that robodebt was illegal, claiming he was powerless to stop it either way.

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