|
Post by nomadic on Jun 7, 2020 7:29:11 GMT 7
Because they are politicians. The law doesn't apply to them.
|
|
|
Post by bear on Jun 7, 2020 8:10:42 GMT 7
Because they are politicians. The law doesn't apply to them. The times my friend are blowing in the wind, and the times they may be a'changin'
|
|
|
Post by itsmylife08 on Jun 7, 2020 10:18:28 GMT 7
Because they are politicians. The law doesn't apply to them. The times my friend are blowing in the wind, and the times they may be a'changin' OK Bob oops soory bear Cheers Itsa
|
|
|
Post by bunyip on Jun 8, 2020 5:11:15 GMT 7
The lastest polls show that morrison and the liberals are more popular then ever, l honestly don't think labor and Albanese will win the next election ,l don't think Albanese has what it takes or the popularity to win. l think we will have a liberal government atleast all the first half of this decade, what this will mean for us DSP's l don't know , probably more nasty stuff like robo debt, welfare cards
|
|
|
Post by bear on Jun 9, 2020 6:45:17 GMT 7
Bankers furious at Austrac penalties as Canberra escapes Robodebt accountability
Westpac has set aside $900m for the Austrac penalty.
An incipient rebellion by the banking industry against “draconian” anti-money laundering enforcement measures is intensifying, as leaders compare Westpac’s $1bn penalty and career-ending accountability moves to Canberra emerging unscathed from the robodebt disaster.
“There’s no logic … behind the two outcomes, particularly if you believe Centrelink’s debt recovery program is a more grievous failure because it preyed on (vulnerable) people,” a senior banker said.While acknowledging Austrac’s serious allegation of a link to child exploitation in some payments made by 12 Westpac customers, he said the bank’s transgressions were overwhelmingly “victimless”. Last Thursday, Westpac released two reports on the Austrac debacle: a management accountability review overseen by Promontory Financial Group, and a report on board governance by a three-member panel chaired by Ziggy Switkowski. The probe blamed “sins of omission and not of commission”, estimating that 99.95 per cent or more of the missing international funds transfer instructions related to legitimate and uncontroversial transactions involving government pension payments et al. Westpac, however, has suffered a heavy toll, with chairman Lindsay Maxsted bringing forward his retirement, chief executive Brian Hartzer losing his job, and non-executive director Ewen Crouch stepping down. In addition, the bank has set aside $900m for a penalty. Austrac is seeking $1.5bn, more than double the penalty paid by Commonwealth Bank for similar AML breaches in 2017. In contrast, the robodebt scandal, where the government will repay $721m after unlawfully using income averaging to raise 470,000 debts from welfare recipients, has not claimed one ministerial head or led to accountability measures. The Weekend Australian reported that some bankers had issued a call to arms against Austrac, accusing it of “virtual entrapment” and “unwarranted statements” in its court action against Westpac and CBA. It said the one-way flow of information from the banks to Austrac created a risk of entrapment, and that the agency had made unwarranted statements in its November statement of claim against Westpac when it accused senior management of indifference and the board of inadequate oversight. The allegations were made as Westpac was raising $500m from retail investors in a share purchase plan. Austrac responded on Friday that it expected regulated businesses to have appropriate systems and processes in place to manage their risk, based on their businesses and the products and services that they provided to their customers. “Austrac senior executives and our staff regularly engage with regulated businesses on matters of compliance and financial intelligence,” a spokeswoman said. In the wake of the Westpac and CBA matters, the banking industry is pushing for a debate on the enforcement model used for anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing. Insiders said that, once the dust settled, there should be a discussion about “proportionate penalties” and “reasonable requirements and expectations of boards, as well as accountability measures”. “Accountability has to be proportionate of the misconduct,” a banker said. “What does the community demand in terms of accountability when (in Westpac’s case) the chairman, the CEO and a senior director step down?” Expectations had been set for “extreme” penalties of billions of dollars, as a result of fines levied on northern hemisphere banks for payments to sanctioned countries. The question had to be asked if inadvertent errors by Australian banks deserved similar treatment. A suggested reform has been for Austrac to join ASIC and the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority in Treasury, exiting its home in the Department of Foreign Affairs. . www.theaustralian.com.au/business/financial-services/bankers-furious-at-penalties-as-canberra-escapes-robodebt-accountability/news-story/29dcb3686c0d83626ce8c54f02ce7d54
|
|
|
Post by bear on Jun 10, 2020 13:15:16 GMT 7
Robodebt: total value of unlawful debts issued under Centrelink scheme to exceed $1bn
Exclusive: three-quarters of all money banked from the welfare program will likely go through the refund process or be wiped
The true value of all welfare debts unlawfully issued through the federal government’s robodebt scheme and soon to be wiped is expected to easily exceed $1bn, the Guardian has learned.In a humiliating backdown, the government last month promised to repay $720m to 373,000 past and present welfare recipients over 470,000 unlawful demands for money calculated using faulty “income averaged” annual pay data as part of Centrelink’s income compliance program. But as new polling showed significant support for a royal commission into the debacle, it can also be revealed internal estimates have shown the total value of those 470,000 unlawful debts will be close to $1.5bn, according to a source familiar with the refunds process. Since 2015, a total of $2.1bn is estimated to have been raised through the income compliance – or robodebt – program, including about 200,000 debts the government still considers legal and which it is not proposing to refund. The total value of the debts raised is much larger than the refunds being issued because much of the money has not been paid back, in many cases because people have sought payment plans, including through forced deductions from their Centrelink benefits. Overall, it means about three-quarters of all money banked from the robodebt program will likely need to be either repaid or wiped. It is also understood an estimate of the service delivery costs of processing the hundreds of thousands of refunds – which is expected to take about three hours for a complex debt – was in excess of $200m. A spokesperson for Stuart Robert, the government services minister, told the Guardian: “It is inaccurate to suggest the process will cost $200m. “The work involved to administer the process will be undertaken by Services Australia using existing resources.” The spokesperson did not respond to questions about the overall value of unlawful debts raised. Last year, Services Australia told a Senate committee the total cost of delivering the program was $606m between 2015-2019. It suggests when the process is over, the government will have spent hundreds of millions of dollars to issue debts and then refund them as part of program it has now been told privately is “not viable”. That does not include any legal fees that may arise from the ongoing class action brought by the law firm Gordon Legal, which is demanding interest on refunds and damages. The firm has said it believes interest and damages would be worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Guardian Australia understands the interest on refunds are estimated about $90m. Guardian Australia has revealed the government is confident it can defend the class action’s negligence claim, although it expects it will need to pay interest on debts as part of Gordon Legal’s “unjust enrichment” claim. The government also paid millions in contracts to external debt collection agencies to claw back Centrelink overpayments – including as part of the robodebt program – although it has never revealed how much it has forked out, claiming the figures are commercial-in-confidence. The scandal-ridden robodebt scheme saw hundreds of thousands of people hit with Centrelink debt letters – sometimes for sums in excess of $10,000 – until a successful federal court challenge brought by Victoria Legal Aid in November. The government has proposed kicking off robodebt refunds from July and has said it hopes the majority of the money will be repaid by November. But it has not ruled out legislating to allow a return to the scheme and had taken legal advice on the proposal late last year. It comes as new polling conducted by Essential Media for Guardian Australia shows overwhelming support for a royal commission into the robodebt fiasco. Asked if there should be a royal commission, 53% of respondents agreed, compared to 23% who disagreed, and 22% who neither agreed nor disagreed. Even among Coalition voters, 45% of respondents supported the call for a royal commission, which has been floated by the Greens’ senator Rachel Siewert as well as some experts and advocates. Labor’s Bill Shorten, who helped launched the class action, has also said there should be an inquiry of some kind, pointing to the turmoil the program caused for victims. The families of some people who have taken their own lives since the program was established have claimed receiving a robodebt letter was a factor in their loved ones’ suicides. The poll found an even larger majority – 74% – said the government should apologise, while 66% said the victims should receive interest and damages on top of their refunds. Essential’s survey of 1,073 respondents had a margin of error of plus or minus 3%. www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/jun/10/robodebt-total-value-of-debts-issued-under-unlawful-centrelink-scheme-to-exceed-1bn-refund?CMP=share_btn_tw
|
|
|
Post by bear on Jun 10, 2020 13:18:13 GMT 7
The times my friend are blowing in the wind, and the times they may be a'changin' OK Bob oops soory bear Cheers Itsa The times aren't the only thing that may be changin', the figures look like they're getting a little bit rubbery as well. Cheers bear
|
|
|
Post by bear on Jun 16, 2020 17:17:04 GMT 7
Senior ministers may be hauled into court over robo-debt class action
Senior ministers may be hauled into court and forced to give evidence as part of the massive robo-debt class action brought against the federal government.In a directions hearing in the Federal Court on Tuesday, lawyers representing Centrelink recipients who were sent more than 500,000 unlawful debt notices said they are considering bringing a misfeasance in public office claim by alleging some ministers, including Government Services Minister Stuart Robert, were acting in bad faith. See more: www.smh.com.au/national/senior-ministers-may-be-hauled-into-court-over-robodebt-class-action-20200616-p55338.html
|
|
|
Post by bunyip on Jun 16, 2020 17:46:34 GMT 7
Theres been suicides over robo debt, its not just a matter of money, its cost people their lives, l hope the politcans face criminal charges
|
|
|
Post by blahblahblah on Jun 17, 2020 6:24:37 GMT 7
|
|
|
Post by bear on Jun 17, 2020 7:09:45 GMT 7
Robodebt's financial cost to soar as judge suggests government will have to pay interest
Class action lawyers raise prospect of misfeasance claim against ministers
The robodebt debacle’s financial cost looks set to grow after a judge suggested it was likely the federal government would have to pay interest on unlawful debts issued to hundreds of thousands welfare recipients over nearly five years.And in an escalation of the class action brought by Gordon Legal, lawyers for the firm raised the prospect of a misfeasance in public office claim that could force ministers to front court over the saga. At a case management hearing on Tuesday, the federal court Justice Bernard Murphy told lawyers for the government it would be “obligated to pay interest” on the debts it agreed to repay.
“You’re being sued for the debt plus interest,” Murphy said while questioning the government’s lawyer Michael Hodge QC. “You’re acknowledging the debts raised illegally ... how do you avoid interest?”In a massive backdown aimed at reducing the damage from the class action, the government last month promised to issue $720m worth of refunds to 373,000 people for 470,000 debts unlawfully raised using the flawed “income averaging” of tax office pay data since July 2015. But Gordon Legal has vowed to push ahead with the class action, seeking interest and damages as part of “unjust enrichment” and negligence claims. The group, represented by Bernie Quinn QC, said on Tuesday there was also uncertainty surrounding when refunds might be issued and a court ruling could decide this. Quinn also flagged plans to argue claims of misfeasance in public office alongside arguments for damages. On Tuesday Hodge said setting aside the debts and repaying the money was not the same as admitting there had been unjust enrichment. The government is also resisting potential arguments that debts raised as part of the scheme but not based on income averaging – usually because the welfare recipients provided payslips or bank statements after they were accused of receiving an overpayment – should also be repaid. If that claim were successful, it would increase the scope of the unlawful debts from 470,000 to about 600,000. Already the government is looking at further financial pain on top of the $720m it has agreed to refund. Guardian Australia understands the interest payments on the refunds would cost about $90m and the refund process – due to run for 12 months from July – will cost $200m, though the government says it will be carried out using Services Australia resources. Murphy also ordered the government to update its defence to match public announcements. In its formal defence to the court, the commonwealth has only admitted debts wholly identified through robodebt are invalid. In public statements it admitted debts both wholly and partly identified through robodebt were invalid. The government has come under pressure from Labor and the Greens after arguing it had no common law duty of care to welfare recipients, in an attempt to avoid paying damages. Guardian Australia has reported that the government has privately conceded it will have to pay interest. It paid interest to a Melbourne woman who brought a successful robodebt challenge with the help of Victoria Legal Aid in November. When it was settling its response to the class action in February, Services Australia told government ministersprivately that “proactively” refunding debts would “reduce the incentive for the applicants to persist with the class action, and minimise the commonwealth’s potential liability for interest and legal costs”. The prime minister, Scott Morrison, issued an apology in parliament last week after Gordon Legal promised that it would not use the comments in court. The case looks set to go to trial over three weeks, starting in September. www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/jun/16/robodebts-financial-cost-to-soar-as-judge-suggests-government-will-have-to-pay-interest
|
|
|
Post by nomadic on Jun 22, 2020 10:20:57 GMT 7
|
|
|
Post by nomadic on Jun 23, 2020 7:32:38 GMT 7
|
|
|
Post by nomadic on Jun 23, 2020 7:37:53 GMT 7
But how about a royal commission for EVERYTHING Centrelink. Corruption, incompetence, torture and death caused by this government department. Biggest scandal in 200 years. Surely Hank Jongen must be charged on all counts just to begin with. biggest criminal in Australian public service history.
|
|
|
Post by bear on Jun 23, 2020 13:33:04 GMT 7
It’s time for a Royal Commission into Robodebt.
For four long years, this Government sent debt collectors after vulnerable Australians. Now we know that many of these “debts” were wrong or didn’t even exist.We’ve heard from the victims of Robodebt. We’ve seen the toll that it’s taken on their families. Australians deserve to know how such a fundamentally flawed, dangerous and unlawful scheme was allowed to continue for as long as it did – and only the full investigative powers of a Royal Commission will help us find the truth. A Royal Commission would shed light on critical questions that might otherwise go unanswered, including what the Government knew and when, what this scheme has cost the Australian taxpayer, and how many Australians have been harmed by the Robodebt scheme. Australians deserve the truth – and only a Royal Commission will help us get there. Please add your name to the petition and tell the Government that it’s time for a Royal Commission into Robodebt.alp.org.au/robodebtroyalcommission?utm_campaign=200623_robodebt&utm_medium=email&utm_source=australianlaborparty
|
|