Australia’s National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) on Tuesday (March 11) released its investigation report, finding that two former federal public servants engaged in serious corrupt conduct in relation to the Robodebt welfare recovery scheme. However, former prime minister Scott Morrison and three other individuals were not found to have engaged in corrupt conduct.
The Robodebt program was introduced by the federal government between 2015 and 2018 to recover alleged welfare overpayments. It used an “income averaging” method to automatically calculate whether welfare recipients had been overpaid. The scheme was later ruled unlawful by the courts and sparked nationwide controversy. Following a Royal Commission in 2023, six individuals were referred to the anti-corruption watchdog for further investigation.
The NACC launched a formal inquiry in February 2025, examining the conduct of five former public servants and Morrison in the policy’s development, approval and implementation. The report found that Mark Withnell, an official at the then Department of Human Services, deliberately misled Department of Social Services officials while preparing cabinet documents in 2015, amounting to serious corrupt conduct.
Former Department of Social Services deputy secretary Serena Wilson was also found to have intentionally provided misleading information, which the commission likewise determined constituted serious corrupt conduct.
The report stated that the other four individuals referred for investigation, including Morrison, were not found to have engaged in corrupt conduct.
The inquiry concluded Morrison failed to detect misleading advice provided by departments largely because the Department of Social Services and the Department of Human Services did not inform him or other ministers that the scheme required a new legislative basis.
Attorney-General Michelle Rowland thanked the NACC for its investigation and said the government would table previously sealed sections of the Royal Commission report in parliament. NACC deputy commissioner Kylie Kilgour said the release of the report would improve transparency and help the public understand the basis of the commission’s conclusions.