On Centrelink and Ley

Mat Cummins writes: Re. “Let them eat Let Centrelink debt notices” (yesterday). Josh Taylor’s piece on Centrelink’s blunders  gives some credence to the possibility of this being an oversight or an unforseen outcome. When are we going to just front this dreadful bunch head on? ScoMo and friends knew exactly what the outcome of this data matching would produce: Headlines where they can claim that they will get back $300m in cheated dole payments. They do not care about the angst caused a class of people they have no personal contact with. Nor do they care that the $300m will be proved illusory in the long term. They get their headline and the Centrelink workers will sort out the fear and anger at the local office level.

As Taylor points out, the health minister buying properties on a whim looks bad when allied with the callousness of Minister Tudge, but the last three years has just been all about telling lies about the state of the economy and then using this lie to cut back on services to the poor while giving money to corporate Australia. This may well prove to be the worst treasurer and PM combination in memory and this Centrelink sideshow is just collateral damage to the have-nots.

On tax

David Coles writes: Re. “Why Australia’s economy is failing” (yesterday). Perhaps the system of company tax should be turned on its head. All businesses pay a specified base percentage with additional payment falling due if they don’t engage in research and development, don’t have headquarters in other countries etc.