Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

That question does presuppose a range of issues that I can reject. Centrelink is an organisation that has sufficient resources to deal with a whole range of work activities. They are currently operating in the Northern Territory emergency response. They are currently responding to the bushfire disaster in Victoria with continuing support. Centrelink works to provide Newstart allowance to customers who meet the requirements. They have an activity test, which means that customers must be actively looking for suitable paid work. They also have a fraud and compliance program in place to ensure that those people who do seek to undermine our strong social security network are actively sought out, and it is ensured that a compliance program is put in place. In terms of the premise of the question, I can reject— (Time expired)