The Canberra Times argues that Mr Porter's reluctance to admit that possibility is troubling, particularly as workers who receive family tax benefits, and age pensioners, are next in line for data matching.
Centrelink's automated welfare-debt retrieval system has mistakenly sent bills of up to $24,000 to welfare recipients. As a result, the Social Services Minister has been accused by the Labor Party and Tasmanian independent MP Andrew Wilkie of preying on Australia's most vulnerable individuals.
But Mr Porter has remained his usual phlegmatic self, saying only a "small" number of people had been asked to refund money they did not owe. He reiterated his belief that the program was working well, and said it would be extended further to recover nearly $4 billion in welfare debts over the next four years.
Such insouciance may be attributed to the Coalition's belief that taxpayers hold welfare recipients in low regard, and that they reserve particular contempt for people rorting the system. Conversely, it might indicate Mr Porter's resolve and confidence that this initiative - which matches Centrelink payments to Tax Office income data to determine if individuals have been overpaid - is fair and equitable and that it will deliver a much-need fillip to government finances.
Yet, the debt-recovery program is susceptible to errors. This is because Centrelink has averaged out yearly tax return information to calculate fortnightly income, despite the likelihood this figure might vary according to the type of work undertaken.
A fishing expedition can't be ruled out, since the government is determined to make welfare an inconvenient and difficult option for anyone minded to seek it. However Mr Porter's reluctance to admit that possibility is troubling, particularly as workers who receive family tax benefits, and age pensioners, are next in line for data matching.
