Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

It's important for the millions of Australian taxpayers that we run our system to ensure that the benefits that the system is designed to provide to them are provided appropriately. That includes ensuring that if their income is different and they're entitled to greater support we're aware of that as well in order to make adjustments to their payments. That is doing the right thing by taxpayers and that is doing the right thing by welfare recipients.

Services Australia require information about income streams held by payment recipients to calculate their payment entitlements under the social security income and assets test. That is their job. I'm aware of the letter you referred to. I asked for a copy of that letter recently. It provides the opportunity for people to call a number—132300—to clarify any of these issues. What I would simply ask people to do, if they have received such a letter, is to simply contact that number or go online, as the letter suggests, and provide the information they that have been asked for. That should lead to the ready resolution of those issues.

It is an important responsibility of the government to ensure that the more than $200 billion in taxpayers' funds that is provided each year, and that amount is growing each year, is administered appropriately. People should get every cent that they're entitled to. They shouldn't get a cent less and they shouldn't get a cent more. And this is a difficult topic for the department of Services Australia to administer, and they do so very professionally. I would encourage all members to encourage their constituents to comply and respond, as they've been asked to do, to assist the department with their inquiries.

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