Tudge

Human Services Minister Alan Tudge says the Government will not scrap Centrelink's debt-recovery system, despite ongoing warnings over inaccuracies.

As the Centrelink debt recovery scandal grew and grew and grew over the holiday period, the responsible politician -- human services minister Alan Tudge -- was nowhere to be seen. He was on holiday, and certainly didn't rush back to work when all hell was breaking loose as people were issued with thousands of dollars in debts they claimed they didn't owe, Centrelink's phone services were swamped, and huge questions were raised over the fairness and accuracy of the new automated system.

Well, Tudge is back at work, and went on ABC Radio National on Wednesday morning to talk about the drama. His response can be summed up thusly:

The human services minister, Alan Tudge, says he is unaware of any Centrelink recipient who is “completely convinced” they have been given a debt notice they do not owe.
Tudge spoke on the Centrelink debacle for the first time since his return from summer holidays on Wednesday morning, saying he was committed to maintaining the government’s controversial automated debt-recovery system.

Centrelink has been slamming thousands of Australians with inaccurate debt letters for months now, so here’s what to do if you are contacted by the agency.