Budget 2017: Welfare hit to target ‘cheats’

More than 20,000 jobseekers are “gaming the system” by turning up to Centrelink appointme­nts just to get paid.

Human Services Minister Alan Tudge. Picture: Aaron Francis

More than 20,000 jobseekers are deliberately “gaming the system” by turning up to Centrelink appointme­nts just to get paid, new figures show, as the government prepares to target in next week’s budget “capable” people who refuse to work.

Employment Minister Mich­aelia Cash and Human Services Minister Alan Tudge will unveil the new welfare crackdown to addres­s concern that loopholes in the system are allowing a small group of repeat offenders to receive­ welfare payments despite regularly missing appointments.

A new system that provides “immediate and proportionate” financial punishment is expected to be a central part of the new regim­e as the government seeks to draw a battleline with Labor over welfare compliance.

New data obtained by The Australian shows that last year 7006 jobseekers missed their Centrelink appointments and re-engaged at the very end of each fortnight, allowing their welfare payments to continue without any financial consequence.

Of those, almost half repeated the behaviour six times or more during the year in order to maintain a Newstart payment of about $579 a fortnight.

An additional 16,492 jobseek­ers were identified for “unusual” behaviour in attending Centrelink appointments at regular intervals only to prevent payments being cut off.

People receive their subsequent welfare instalments of welfare­ and full backpay if they attend appointments the day before­ their money is due to arrive­ in bank accounts, despite shirking previous mutual-oblig­ation ­requirements.

The group the department has identified as deliberately gaming the welfare system amounts to about 3 per cent of the 759,000 people receiving the Newstart ­allowance.

Senator Cash said that Aust­ralian taxpayers expected the welfare system not to be abused by those “who have no desire to work”.

“Australia’s welfare system is there to provide a safety net for those in need — not to fund a lifestyle choice,” she told The ­Australian.

“The Coalition continues to look at ways in which to strengthen the system so that community expectations are met and to ensure­ that those that can work, do work.”

Mr Tudge said that while the majority of jobseekers did the right thing, the government was seeking to target the “persistent group of capable people who are gaming the system”.

“We need to close these loopholes so that jobseekers can’t get around their obligations,” he told The Australian.

“It is in their interests as much as the community’s for them to get back to work as quickly as possible, because the longer a ­person is on welfare, the steeper the road back to ­employment.

“We need a system that ­recognises that some have serious issues in their life and need assistance. But for those who are gaming the system, we need to introduce stronger, more immed­iate ­conse­quences.”

The departmental figures, compiled for the period October 2015 to September 2016, show that some jobseekers repeated behaviour was aimed at deliberately keeping payments flowing while missing appointments for almost the entire­ year.

A total of 3415 people re-engaged­ with Centrelink every 56 days to avoid having payments cut off, and 809 of those repeated the behaviour more than six times — meaning their welfare payments remained untouched for 336 days of the year, though they were repeatedl­y suspended and then backpaid. The new push to target the worst offenders in the system is likely to be coupled with other budget measures aimed at shifting people from welfare to work, with the government already flagging that it would attempt to tighten the waiver system put in place under the former Labor government.

Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce told young people last month to “get off your backsides” to find work, while backbench Coal­ition MPs have hit out at “job snobs” who are refusing employment opportunities, particularly in regional areas.

Australian Council of Social Service chief executive Cassandra Goldie has argued that family payments­, unemployment benefits and other programs should be untouched in the budget, especially­ given deep cuts in previous­ years.

A recent Newspoll also found that Australians were overwhelmingly opposed to new welfare savings measures, with 61 per cent of those surveyed opposing cuts to the portfolio next week.

But Scott Morrison has indicated that he is prepared to confront welfare non-compliance, seizing on figures showing 36,000 Australians rejected job offers last year­. “If they knock back those jobs, they are not taking those jobs, then they shouldn’t be getting the dole,” he told Sydney radio station 2GB.