Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The member for Bradfield moved this motion, which talks about problems with Services Australia. This is an MP with the hide of a rhinoceros rather than the memory of an elephant! I was so surprised—so shocked, in fact—that he raised the matter here in the chamber, given the former coalition government 's track record with Services Australia and the fact that Labor is still dealing with the mess that his mob left behind!

And it is a huge mess, one that affects my constituents today. It's one that's affecting many Australians every day, especially with the increased cost-of-living pressures. The fact is that the former coalition government, that Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison progression of horrors, left Services Australia understaffed and undersupported for those who were employed. The coalition decreased the number of Services Australia staff by 3,800—3,800! That's 3,800 fewer people to answer the phones or deal with claims processing—more waiting, more delays and more frustration. The ratio of staff members to members of the public increased from one for every 700 to one to 1,000, while the Australian population grew. Not surprisingly, these measures led to lengthy delays in dealing with claims as well as increasing unhappiness with services amongst the public.

Australians actually have a right to access government services in a timely manner. We understand that people are frustrated when they face a delay, and we're working hard to get through the backlog of claims that we inherited. Services Australia, that is—Medicare, child support and Centrelink—is also managing changes in eligibility, leading to an increase in customers, seasonal peaks, surge activities and three current emergency activations. These services are provided via face-to-face, digital and telephony channels for millions of Australians. The average number of customer contacts per week is 9.5 million. That's why the Albanese government announced, for the first time in a decade, 3,000 extra staff for Services Australia in November 2023, spread across capital cities and regional centres. The core purpose of this staffing boost was to address those horrific call wait times and to speed up claim processing immediately.

We know there's still a job to do. Today, even with the 3,000 additional jobs, staffing levels are more than 3,000 fewer than they were a decade ago. Obviously, technology provides some opportunities for rationalisation, but during this time the Australian population actually grew by 17 per cent. Labor understands the urgency; this is the fastest recruitment process on such a scale ever undertaken by Services Australia. The Albanese Labor government's focus is on getting humans back into human services, especially important for those amongst us who are unable to use digital services. To these people I say that I understand your reticence, particularly during times of crisis like those in my electorate, where we had massive floods in 2011 and 2022. Unfortunately, the internet often goes out for almost an entire suburb at such times and access can become problematic.

For many Australians, the wounds from the previous coalition government's cruel, heartless robodebt policy are still raw. For 4½ years, the coalition perpetrated the absolutely disgraceful robodebt scheme, where unlawful debt notices were sent to nearly half a million Australians—Australians who had done nothing wrong. The debt notices were false—what a debacle! But, worse than that, for all affected it was highly stressful and traumatic and, for some families, it became a cruel tragedy. It also badly affected the dedicated Services Australia staff who were required to roll out this cruel system.

Let's keep in mind that these frontline staff already experience stress due to unacceptable levels of abuse. It's a fact that when Services Australia staff pick up the phone they're immediately dealing with someone who is highly stressed, has probably waited a long time and who has a problem that needs a solution. While this may help explain the aggression that Services Australia staff have to deal with, it doesn't ever excuse it. The 30,000 hardworking Services Australia employees who turn up every day to help their fellow Australians deserve better than that. And I agree with the Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme and Minister for Government Services when he describes his employees as 'highly motivated and wanting to make a difference'. I'm so glad that we've negotiated an updated enterprise agreement and that they've finally secured a long-overdue pay rise.

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