The Federal Government is taking action to replace a 30-year-old welfare payment system that delivers around $100 billion in payments to 7.3 million people each year. Minister for Social Services, Scott Morrison, and Minister for Human Services, Marise Payne made the announcement on Friday. “This important long-term investment will allow the government to properly address the challenges facing Australia’s welfare system, maximise the benefits of e-government, reduce the costs of administering the system for taxpayers and help crack down on welfare cheats,” Senator Morrison said. The government is expected to pay $1 billion for the updated infrastructure, and efficiencies expected from the new system mean it will pay for itself over time. The project will be carried out in multiple tranches and Centrelink customers will begin to see the benefits of the upgrade by the end of 2016, the government said. “This investment will also help us stop the rorts by giving our welfare cops the tools they need on the beat to collar those who are stealing from taxpayers by seeking to defraud the system,” Senator Morrison said. “ICT reform will also ensure more government systems are talking to each other, lessening the compliance burden on individuals, employers and service providers,” he said. Minster Payne said the multi-year project will be one of the world’s largest transformations of a social welfare system. “Work will begin immediately to mobilise the project team so that we can go to the market early in the new financial year,” Minister Payne said. He said the government will benefit from faster, less costly implementation of social policy changes and better data analytics to inform policy decisions. Improvements in real-time data sharing between agencies will mean that with customer consent, their information won’t have to be provided twice. “Improved data sharing will also significantly increase the government’s ability to detect and prevent fraud and non-compliance. This means customers who fail to update their details with us will be less likely to have to repay large debts, and those who wilfully act to defraud taxpayer will be caught much more quickly,” Minister Payne said. The National Commission of Audit last year recommended the government replace the existing welfare system, which is complex due to many policy decisions about its structure and goals, and ad hoc changes that have been made over decades. Many of these changes are enshrined in legislation, the commission said last May. Follow CIO Australia on Twitter and Like us on Facebook… Twitter: @CIO_Australia, Facebook: CIO Australia, or take part in the CIO conversation on LinkedIn: CIO Australia Follow Byron Connolly on Twitter:@ByronConnolly Related content brandpost Sponsored by Freshworks When your AI chatbots mess up AI ‘hallucinations’ present significant business risks, but new types of guardrails can keep them from doing serious damage By Paul Gillin Dec 08, 2023 4 mins Generative AI brandpost Sponsored by Dell New research: How IT leaders drive business benefits by accelerating device refresh strategies Security leaders have particular concerns that older devices are more vulnerable to increasingly sophisticated cyber attacks. By Laura McEwan Dec 08, 2023 3 mins Infrastructure Management case study Toyota transforms IT service desk with gen AI To help promote insourcing and quality control, Toyota Motor North America is leveraging generative AI for HR and IT service desk requests. By Thor Olavsrud Dec 08, 2023 7 mins Employee Experience Generative AI ICT Partners feature CSM certification: Costs, requirements, and all you need to know The Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) certification sets the standard for establishing Scrum theory, developing practical applications and rules, and leading teams and stakeholders through the development process. By Moira Alexander Dec 08, 2023 8 mins Certifications IT Skills Project Management Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe