Mr BEAZLEY (2:06 PM) —My question is to the Minister for Community Services. Are you aware that Centrelink's official policy in relation to social security debts is `all debts incurred must be repaid'? Are you also aware that families receiving family tax benefit payments from Centrelink who are found to have inadvertently underestimated their income by as little as $1 a week are required to pay back every cent of that overpayment? Are you further aware that the average debt raised against families in receipt of family payments is currently around $1,000? Minister, why do you have a zero tolerance approach when it comes to Centrelink overpayments to struggling families when your government allows a minister to pay just two per cent of the bill for the misuse of his telephone card?

Mr Hawker —Mr Speaker, I would ask you to rule that question out of order. That question asks the minister about an area for which he has no responsibility.

Mr SPEAKER —The member for Wannon raises a point of order, but the question included a preamble which invited the minister to comment on a number of areas that are of his portfolio responsibility.

Mr ANTHONY (Minister for Community Services) —Centrelink and the government have introduced a number of measures to try and get more compliance and to get more accuracy of payments. Of course, that is what taxpayers demand. As far as Centrelink is concerned, over one-third of the budget goes out in social security payments. With the family payments, we have introduced a policy of full reconciliation. That means that we are encouraging those receiving social security payments, and particularly family assistance, to ensure that they declare to Centrelink their correct earnings. This means that, for the first time, as at the end of this financial year, those individuals and those families—

Mr ANTHONY —The Leader of the Opposition may choose to listen to this. Those families that overestimate their income for the first time will be able to have a top-up payment to ensure that they get their correct entitlement. Why should we not be encouraging families to get their correct entitlement? Under these changes, for the first time, they will be able to receive more if they have overestimated their income. This is a measure that we have introduced. The important point is that there have been enormous increases to families—over $2.4 billion in family assistance, something that you never provided—and very generous savings bonuses that go towards older Australians, which you never provided when you introduced wholesale sales taxes and failed to give tax cuts.