Fed: Govt delayed overpayment letters until after poll - Labor

AAP General News (Australia)
12-05-2001
Fed: Govt delayed overpayment letters until after poll - Labor

CANBERRA, Dec 5 AAP - The federal government had delayed sending out welfare overpayment
bills to at least 100,000 Australian families until after the election, Labor said today.

The bills would require families to pay between $20 and $40 a fortnight to total amounts
of an average $750, opposition family and community services spokesman Wayne Swan said.

The overpayment letters were reportedly scheduled to be sent out two months ago.

However Family and Community Services Minister Amanda Vanstone said Centrelink had
to wait until legislation was passed before it could start calculating all the debts.

"Senator Vanstone now admits it is 100,000 Australian families. I suspect it is significantly
more," Mr Swan told ABC radio.

"The government should come clean and give us the precise figure, the precise number
of families and the precise amounts of their debt."

He said the government's delay was obscene.

"Tens of thousands of families out there still don't know that they're going to get
a letter from Senator Vanstone in January/February, saying they have an average bill of
around $750 each."

Senator Vanstone said she did not believe the letters could have been sent earlier.

"The estimate is that there will be about 100,000 people who, even taking into account
the $1,000 waver, would have had overpayments above that $1,000," she said.

She said people could avoid estimating their income in advance if they wanted to take
the payments at the end of the year through the tax system.

"I appreciate, however, that families might want that money during the year, in which
case they work on estimates.

"There is no other sensible way to do it."

Senator Vanstone discounted the possibility of a new $1,000 waver, as in the system's
first year, saying people now understood the new system.

AAP dep/las

KEYWORD: FAMILIES

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