Government to pay back $721m as it scraps Robodebt for Centrelink welfare recipients

The Federal Government has announced it will refund $721 million worth of debts it clawed back through its controversial Robodebt scheme. Key points: Almost half a million debts will be waived or refunded by the Government The computer-generated demands for payment will be refunded if they have already paid The scheme began requiring additional proof last year Services Australia said in a statement that 470,000 debts would be waived, with refunds to be rolled out from July. "Refunds will also be made for any interest charges and/or recovery fees paid on related debts," Human Services Minister Stuart Robert said in a statement. The decision comes after the Department of Human Services halted a key part of the scheme last year and said it would require additional proof before it used income averaging to identify over-payments. The scheme saw hundreds of thousands of people issued with computer-generated debt notices. Robodebt was the name given to an averaging process which saw data from the Australian Tax Office matched with income reported to Centrelink by welfare recipients. But concerns were quickly raised that the process was faulty, sending out automated demands for payment from people who did not owe the Government any money. Lawyers for people with the debts argued the system lacked human oversight, and said it reversed the burden of proof. The decision comes after the Department of Human Services halted a key part of the scheme last year and said it would require additional proof before it used income averaging to identify over payments.

Australia’s Prosecutors Have Accused The Federal Government Of Inviting Crime Tourism

The prosecutors say a decision by the Department of Home Affairs would allow serious criminals to be deported rather than face Australia’s criminal justice system. Hannah Ryan by Hannah Ryan BuzzFeed News Reporter, Australia 💬 Be one of the first to comment Stefan Postles / Getty Images Home affairs minister Peter Dutton. Australia’s leading prosecutors have accused the Department of Home Affairs of making a decision that could let criminals escape punishment by leaving the country, in a letter sent to department secretary Mike Pezzullo. The letter was signed by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in each of Australia’s states and territories, according to The Herald Sun. Visa cancellations on character grounds under section 501 of the Migration Act have captured public attention, especially in light of the high numbers of New Zealanders being deported. Character-based visa cancellations usually follow a criminal conviction. But there is an increasing trend where visas are cancelled before a trial takes place. That is possible under a different provision – section 116 – that allows the government to cancel a person’s visa when they are charged with a crime, before they are ever tried, convicted or sentenced. The Migration Act lets the states and territories issue "criminal justice stay certificates", which is supposed to hit pause on any plans to deport someone who hasn’t finished their criminal justice process. But the DPPs said they had been told home affairs had decided that the certificate could be trumped by a separate section, section 198, compelling the government to deport “an unlawful non-citizen” who asks to be removed. That section says the deportation has to happen as soon as possible. The department’s decision could have “far-reaching” consequences, the DPPs wrote. They cautioned that it meant “a non-citizen could circumvent the administration of justice – at any stage of that process – simply by requesting their removal” from Australia. The DPPs suggested the decision could invite criminal tourism — people travelling to Australia “for the specific purpose of carrying out criminal offences, knowing that they would be effectively rendered immune from prosecution and the consequences of conviction by making a request for removal”. It is not clear whether any criminal defendants have yet been deported before being convicted or sentenced. BuzzFeed News has approached each DPP for comment. At the time of publication, the DPPs in Queensland, South Australia and Victoria had declined to comment. Shadow attorney-general Mark Dreyfus criticised the government’s decision in an interview on ABC radio today, saying that “we’ve got to have trials taking place when people have committed offences here in Australia”. “I think that the administration of our criminal justice system, making sure that people who’ve committed serious crimes in our country are ... charged and convicted and punished for their crimes, has got to take precedence over any idea [home affairs minister] Mr Dutton and his department may have.” In the letter, the DPPs foreshadowed a potential legal challenge, writing that they “trust your department will change its view, to obviate the necessity of any challenge to that view.” In an emailed statement, the Department of Home Affairs confirmed that Pezzullo had received the letter, but did not respond to questions about his response, or whether anyone had been deported ahead of a trial.

Hijab House crash driver arrested for a second time, charged over incident that left 14 injured

Hijab shop crash driver denied bail A 51-year-old man whose station wagon crashed into a hijab store in Sydney's western suburbs has been denied bail on Saturday. Photo: AAP The man who crashed into a western Sydney hijab shop will remain behind bars after facing court on Saturday on a string of driving offences. Sydney driver released after crash into hijab shop Sabry Moustafa Nassar, 51, applied for bail when he appeared in Parramatta Bail Court but was successfully opposed by police prosecutors because of the risk to the community and fears of a repeat incident. The court heard the crash was similar to an incident at Lakemba earlier in the year for which he has also been charged. Magistrate Holly Kemp said there were elements of “predatory or deliberate behaviour” in that offence which occurred in January. “The material before me concerns, in my view, two similar incidents over a short period of time and represents a serious example in this alleged offence,” Magistrate Kemp said. She added no bail conditions would mitigate her fear for the community or concerns Mr Nassar could reoffend. Nassar’s lawyer Mostafa Daoudie told the court his client was unconscious during the Greenacre incident and denied he deliberately drove into the store. Nassar is facing a maximum possible jail term of two years and Mr Daoudie said that due to court delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, time in custody would be likely to outweigh any sentence. Nassar was re-arrested on Friday and charged with a number of offences relating to Thursday’s crash which injured 14 people. He has been charged with driving furiously in a motor vehicle causing bodily harm, reckless driving, negligent driving, proceeding through a red traffic light and failing to notify authorities of a change of residential address. Mr Nassar has also been charged with driving recklessly and not giving his details to another driver in relation to a separate traffic incident at Lakemba on January 14. Ten people were hospitalised and at least two people suffered broken bones when Mr Nassar’s Mitsubishi SUV crashed through the front door of Hijab House at Greenacre on Thursday afternoon. CCTV footage seen by AAP shows the wagon initially stopped in the left lane 30 metres before the traffic lights at the intersection of Boronia and Waterloo Roads with other cars moving around it. Play Video When it takes off, it rear-ends a white sedan, causing a series of minor collisions between other cars waiting at the traffic lights. Smoke can be seen billowing into the air as the wagon’s wheels spin for at least 20 seconds behind the white sedan. The sedan is eventually pushed around the corner and the SUV continues through the intersection and ploughs into the store. Mr Nassar was conscious when arrested and was taken to hospital for testing under police guard. After being interviewed at Bankstown Police Station, Mr Nassar was released without charge, before being re-arrested at a Greenacre home on Friday night. -AAP ============= The man allegedly behind the wheel of a car that sped into a shop in Sydney's west has been charged. The 51-year-old was taken to hospital in handcuffs on Thursday after his Mitsubishi SUV crashed into a clothing store in Greenacre just after 3pm. He was initially questioned and released before being arrested again on Friday. All but one of the injured pedestrians have been discharged from hospital following the crash on Thursday night at Greenacre. (Nine News) NSW Police said tonight he had been charged with driving furiously in a motor vehicle to do or cause bodily harm, driving recklessly or furiously or at speed or in a manner that is dangerous, negligent driving, proceeding through a red traffic light, and failing to notify an authority of a change of address. He was also charged over an unrelated traffic incident in Lakemba on January 14 with driving recklessly or furiously or at speed or in a manner that is dangerous, and not giving particulars to another driver. He has been refused bail and is set to face Parramatta Bail Court on Saturday. A crime scene was established after 12 people were injured in the Greenacre incident. (9News) Fourteen people were injured in the crash, including 10 who were taken to hospital. RELATED Three men killed after car hits tree and catches fire in 'tragic and horrific' accident north-west of Brisbane Hijab House crash: Teenage girl in hospital and driver released after car slammed into Sydney shop, injuring 14 Elderly man hospitalised after car crashes at McDonald's Clayton South in Melbourne A 13-year-old girl remains in hospital in a stable condition with non-life-threatening injuries. The owner of Hijab House said he first heard about the incident on social media and immediately thought the worst. "I thought initially that somebody was killed because of the scenes I saw online," Tarik Houcher told 9News. "We had staff members behind that counter, we had two staff members as well as customers in front of it so to me it was a miracle people survived, let along escaped with no scratches." Hijab House Greenacre split Dozens of emergency crew rushed to the scene of the crash, on the corner of Juno Parade and Waterloo Road in Greenacre. (Supplied) Mr Houcher said the shop had been targeted many times in the past, and he hoped this latest incident was simply an accident. "Obviously with Hijab House we've been the victims of many racially motivated attacks in the past, we've dealt with this many time, being such a visible Islamic brand, so one can never really let go of any doubt," he said. His sister, who works in the store, is one of those injured and recovering in hospital. "I know that every time there's a loud sound my sister is reacting quite strongly to it and so we have to just make sure that she's looked after and that we get through this," Mr Houcher said.

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