E&EO
GREG HUNT It now appears as if there is systemic fraud and problems of phantom insulation under the disastrous home insulation program. Just this morning we have received reports of phantom insulation, of claims on a systemic basis for insulation , for the laying of batts that never occurred. I have written to Greg Combet calling for an urgent Auditor General’s inquiry and a statement on systemic fraud and criminality under the home insulation program by the Prime Minister, next Tuesday, in the Parliament. Our own office has made 79 representations to the Government in relation to the home insulation program, 13 of those had been in relation to fraud. But what we are seeing overnight is a flood of stories of people saying this never happened – we didn’t get insulation but we are getting letters from the government asking if we are happy with the job. Phantom insulation, a government which was warned in August, and systemic evidence of criminal fraud. Inaction by the Government and the Prime Minister must tell the Parliament on Tuesday about what the Government knows and when it was warned and told about criminal fraud under the home insulation program.
JOURNALIST You say this is systemic, so how widespread are you talking about?
GREG HUNT Well, what we have heard is there are many examples that have been reported to radio stations, being reported to the Government. Everything that we have received, we have reported to the Government. It now appears that there may have been widespread systemic fraud and the Government must come clean and indicate the scope and scale of the problem and what it is doing and guarantee that every case has been referred to either state or federal policing agencies.
JOURNALIST Is this mostly anecdotal at the moment or do you have figures?
GREG HUNT We know that in our own office we have referred 13 cases. We are hearing of numerous cases that have been reported to radio stations. The Government has started to finally send out letters to people to find out if they are happy with the insulation job. Many people are receiving letters having never had insulation done. So what we are seeing is a pattern of names being taken from phonebooks, signatures forged, no checking from the Commonwealth and right now we have phantom insulation that is beginning to explode as an issue. The Government was warned about systemic fraud back in August. We called, and the community called for an Auditor General’s inquiry. The Government blocked the Auditor General from taking action. The result is systemic fraud, criminal action and possibly an organised crime link but the Government must come clean and the Prime Minister must make a statement.
JOURNALIST Any idea how much money we might be talking about?
GREG HUNT The Government must say how much money they feel has been skimmed by organised crime, how much money has been skimmed by dodgy operators who have been engaged in phantom insulation. Picking names out of phonebooks, forging signatures, Peter Garrett just wrote the cheque.
JOURNALIST Freight forward and logistic companies are also concerned that they’ve been left holding thousands of insulation batts, do you think the Government should be helping them out financially?
GREG HUNT Only this morning I have been speaking with insulation firms that relied on meetings with Mr Garrett or his Department in the weeks prior to the cancellation of the program. They had expressed clear and absolute guarantees that the program would continue. So what we’ve seen is people make good faith decisions on the basis of promises by the government. In the legal world that is known as a stop all and there’s a duty of care. In the political world what it means is that people relied on the actions of Government and they were duded. And so, the Government was asleep at the wheel on criminal fraud, and the Government was asleep at the wheel in terms of taking care of small and medium businesses. There has to be a small and medium business package. We were told it was going to be announced last week – no package, chaos in the industry, jobs at stake. Businesses from their own words to me today, due to go under without an urgent assistance package.
JOURNALIST Inaudible
GREG HUNT The Government shouldn’t discriminate. The Government should make sure that those people that are victims of maladministration are protected.
Ends.