The National Anti-Corruption Commission (Nacc) won’t pursue an investigation into six individuals referred by the robodebt royal commission, due to separate public service investigations being carried out into five of them.
The Nacc said on Thursday that it was “unlikely it would obtain significant new evidence” and had concluded it was “undesirable for a number of reasons to conduct multiple investigations into the same matter”.
The conduct of the six unnamed public officials had been “fully explored” by the royal commission and “extensively discussed in its final report”, the Nacc said.
The Nacc said it was “conscious of the impact of the robodebt scheme on individuals and the public, the seniority of the officials involved, and the need to ensure that any corruption issue is fully investigated”.
The Nacc noted five of the six public officials referred for a possible corruption investigation were also the subject of referrals to the Australian Public Service Commission.
“There is not value in duplicating work that has been or is being done by others, in this case with the investigatory powers of the royal commission, and the remedial powers of the APSC,” it said.
The Nacc said it could make a finding of corrupt conduct but could not grant a remedy or impose a sanction, nor “provide any individual remedy or redress for the recipients of government payments or their families who suffered due to the robodebt scheme”.
“The [Nacc] has therefore decided not to commence a corruption investigation as it would not add value in the public interest.”
Paul Brereton, the Nacc commissioner, delegated the decision not to pursue an investigation to a deputy commissioner “to avoid any possible perception of a conflict of interest”.
The decision was met with anger and sadness by victims and whistleblowers.
Michael Griffin, who was hit with a false $3,197 debt in late 2016, said it was “shameful” and showed justice would elude victims.
“This is the first proper test of the new Nacc, and the result couldn’t be clearer – it is weak as piss,” he said. “Hearing this news makes it is clear there is no pathway to justice for the victims of robodebt.”
Whistleblower Colleen Taylor, a former Centrelink worker who warned senior management about the deep flaws with robodebt, said it left her “saddened”.
Taylor said she could understand the desire not to duplicate investigations, but said she would have preferred the Nacc took precedent.
“It leaves me saddened and worried that we are getting further away from any accountability,” she said. “Whoever does the investigation, I want the deception and lies to be accountable. The victims of Robodebt deserve no less.”
“Commissioner Catherine Holmes held off tabling the Report so that referrals could specifically be made to the newly forming National Anti-Corruption Commission. I think the work done by the Royal Commission and their recommendations should not be dishonoured.”
In July, royal commissioner Catherine Holmes delivered her report on the robodebt scheme, which she labelled “crude and cruel” and “neither fair nor legal”.
Referrals to the anti-corruption commission, police and other agencies “for civil action or criminal prosecution” were contained in a sealed chapter. This meant while criticisms of Coalition ministers and bureaucrats were public the potential further legal consequences were unclear at that time.
The robodebt royal commission report found that the then social services minister Scott Morrison “allowed cabinet to be misled” that the scheme required legislative changes. Holmes rejected “as untrue” Morrison’s evidence that income averaging was an established practice.
Morrison, the former prime minister, rejected this, arguing the commission had “unfairly and retroactively” applied a consensus the debt recovery program was unlawful.
The report found that Kathryn Campbell, the former secretary of the human services department, “did nothing of substance … when exposed to information that brought to light the illegality of income averaging”.
Separate to the Nacc’s investigations, the Australian Public Service Commission has been investigating the actions of 16 bureaucrats involved in the scheme after establishing a taskforce in August last year.
The taskforce is examining whether the 16 federal public servants breached code of conduct requirements. If found in breach, those still employed could be sacked, or have their salaries or classifications reduced.
In an update at Senate estimates hearings in May, the agency head, Gordon de Brouwer, said one of the 16 people “did not meet the threshold to issue a notice of suspected breach”. Seven final determinations – meaning a finding – had been given and another seven were still under way. The final outcomes were expected to be made public by July.
Jamie Lowe, the APSC’s first assistant commissioner, said four people who had already been sanctioned were current public servants.
“Of the remaining seven matters [yet to be resolved], two individuals remain with the public service,” Lowe told the hearing.
The government services minister, Bill Shorten, has said it was “not sustainable” for the chapter to remain secret for ever.
Gordon Legal, the law firm behind the $1.8bn robodebt class action, has said it is prepared to launch a fresh civil case alleging misfeasance in public office unless a settlement for further compensation is reached.
