Centrelink scandal: department declines to say how much debt retrieved by system

The government has been unable to say how much debt it has actually recovered since it introduced its automated compliance system in July.

The controversial debt recovery system has been plagued by complaints since human oversight was reduced and efforts to claw back overpayments were ramped up in July.

Guardian Australia asked the Department of Human Services to clarify exactly how much debt has been recovered under the new arrangements. But the department has been unable to respond, despite being given a week to nominate a figure. It was unable to give an estimate for when such a figure could be provided.