Social security in Australia

All Centrelink income support payments are payable fortnightly, usually by direct deposit required into the recipient's bank account. They are also subject to a means test which calculates the recipient (and their partner's) fortnightly income and assets and affects the rate of their payment accordingly. As such, people on lower incomes may be entitled to part-payment of their allowance (subject to other qualification requirements). The assessment of income and assets varies greatly between different social security payments and the effect that income and assets have on each payment differs in that they have different income thresholds (i.e. how much income one can earn before it affects their payment) and different taper rates (the amount the payment drops by per dollar above these thresholds).

An individual may be precluded from claiming any of income support payments listed below for a certain number of weeks following receipt of a lump sum compensation payment, made wholly or partly in respect of lost earnings or lost capacity to earn resulting from personal injury[9] (often received in settlement of a Workers' Compensation claim). The number of weeks for which the preclusion period applies to an individual is proportional the size of the lump sum payment they received.[10] Centrelink has a discretion to reduce the duration of the preclusion period if it is satisfied that there exist special circumstances that make an individual's case out of the ordinary: for example, extreme financial hardship.[11]

The Age Pension was the first payment made by the Commonwealth Government, dating back to 1909.[12] It is available to persons aged 65 years and over.[13] The eligibility age is currently being progressively increased to a cap of 67 years old.[14]

There is no automatic entitlement to an Age Pension, unlike in countries such as the UK or New Zealand. Taxpayer-funded pensions are means tested[13] (similar to the UK's Pension Credit), effectively making them another type of benefit. Except for the mandatory superannuation scheme, workers do not contribute to a pension or insurance scheme in Australia, unlike pension schemes in many other countries.

JobSeeker Payment is the main unemployment benefit paid to eligible Australians and permanent residents aged 22 to 64. To be eligible, a person must apply for the benefit and be actively seeking work, undertaking approved training or performing approved volunteer work. On 1 July 1991, the "Newstart Allowance" replaced the Unemployment Benefit (UB) which had been unchanged since 1945.[15] It was part of a government reform called Newstart - the Active Employment Strategy.[16]

The Newstart Allowance was formally renamed to the JobSeeker Payment on 20 March 2020.

A job seeker receiving this payment is paid on the basis of a 'mutual agreement' between the customer and Centrelink, where Centrelink will continue to pay fortnightly payments to the customer for so long as the customer attempts to find employment and fulfills their mutual obligation requirements. These mutual agreements are negotiated between Centrelink and the job seeker, and often includes participation in the jobactive program. These agreements are then recorded in a "Job Plan", a written document which outlines the personal process for an individual to no longer need the JobSeeker Payment. Activities to which a job seeker may have to agree, in order to continue receiving the Newstart Allowance, include applying for a specific number of jobs (usually ten) per fortnight and recording these applications in a Centrelink issued diary,[17] undertaking vocational education or training, paid work experience, participation in a labour market program or Work for the Dole project, and other activities, such as voluntary work if considered appropriate by Centrelink.[18] For example, more elderly customers who have been made redundant and are approaching the age pension age, and who may face considerable difficulties re-entering the labour market, are often permitted to fulfil their plan by engaging in voluntary activities alone. A job seeker has to nominate and engage in one activity (for example, either a vocational education activity or Work for the Dole activity) in any one mutual obligation period (lasting six months at a time).

Clients are not expected to engage in the more intensive of these activities as soon as their receipt of the allowance commences. The amount of activity required on behalf of the client in order to continue receiving his/her benefit is usually staggered as follows:

• Ordinarily, during the first three months of unemployment, a job seeker has no other obligations but to submit a fortnightly Application For Payment form at the local office. The form asks the applicant a number of questions about his /her circumstances and for the basic details of four positions for which the job seeker applied in the last fortnight. Customers may also be required to make up to 10 'Job Search Contacts' per fortnight (dependent on the local labour market and their personal circumstances) and record the details of these jobs within a specifically issued Job Seeker Diary for a given period of time. The job seeker then takes the Application For Payment form personally to the local Centrelink Office. He will then attend a short one-on-one interview with a Centrelink officer. The interview is usually for the purposes of checking that the application form is in order and that the applicant is aware of any appointments that may need to be attended, and obligations that may need to be met. The client at this stage also has the opportunity to talk to a Centrelink officer about any problems the client may be encountering without having to make a prior appointment first.
• If after an initial three months of unemployment, during which the job seeker has only to hand in the fortnightly application form and record the Job Seeker Diary, the client remains unemployed; the client will be required to attend appointments with a Job Services Australia provider whose responsibility it is to assist the client to re-enter the work force. The job seeker also has to attend a two-week training course which focusses on job searching skills such as writing resumes and attending interviews.
• If the customer remains unemployed for twelve months, they are then subject to the Work Experience Phase of their Employment Pathway Plan, which consists of more intensive assistance involving the activities listed above, such as, Work for the Dole, accredited study, part-time work, volunteer work or a combination of these. A Job Services Australia provider may require a Newstart recipient to do voluntary work (up to 15 hours a week), for which clients receive a supplement to their benefit of $20.80 per fortnight. The supplement is also paid to Work for the Dole participants.[19] They must also continue to apply for 4 or more positions at the same time to meet their mutual obligations.
• If the client becomes long-term unemployed (24 months or longer), the client's activity requirements will usually consist of another Work Experience Phase style activity for six months in any twelve-month period. (Australia's unemployment benefits do not have a time limit: it is, in theory, possible to remain on unemployment benefits for the whole of one's working life).

Newstart Allowance rates are adjusted on 20 March and 20 September each year. As of September 2013, the basic Newstart rate for a single unemployed person without children was A$501 per fortnight. However, this basic rate does not include supplement payments which can include Rent Assistance of up to A$121.00 per fortnight, and other supplements, such as Pharmaceutical Allowance, Telephone Allowance, Remote Area Allowance, Training Supplement and the Work For The Dole Supplement; which are paid depending on personal circumstances and activity.[20] Rates differ for married couples, registered relationships or de facto couples (including same sex or opposite sex couples) and persons with children. Despite significant increases in the cost of living, the increases to the Newstart Allowance have not kept pace with inflation. The initial income threshold has only risen from 1987's $60 to $62 in 2000 where it remains today.

On 1 March 2010, the Australian Government introduced changes to Disability Employment Services. Multiple existing programs were streamlined into two clearly distinct programs, making assessment and referral processes less complex.

All eligible job seekers with disability have access to individually tailored services which meet their needs including capacity building, training, work experience and other 'interventions' to help participants obtain and maintain suitable employment. DES providers support and manage a participant's condition in the workplace, along with providing ongoing support in the workplace for as long as it is required.

New compliance rules were introduced on 1 July 2011, dealing with client meetings with a DES provider and payment suspension. Data released in mid-November 2013 showed that the number of welfare recipients had grown by 55%. In 2007 228,621 Newstart Allowance recipients were registered, a total that increased to 646,414 in March 2013.[21]

In January 2014 Patrick McClure was appointed by the Abbott Government to a review targeting benefits on people in receipt of Newstart Allowance and the Disability Support Pension, due to reporti in February 2014.[22]

In the 2016 Australian federal budget, the Turnbull Government planned to cease the clean energy supplement of $4.40 for people beginning Newstart after 20 September.[23]

In 2017, the Australian Council of Social Service stated that the Newstart Allowance was $160 below the poverty line.[24] The Business Council of Australia also advocates for increasing the Newstart Allowance, saying that it is impossible to live on.[25] In March 2018, Newstart was raised by 50 cents per day, which was criticised as inadequate.[26] After handing down the 2018 Australian federal budget, Treasurer Scott Morrison rejected calls to increase the rate of the Newstart Allowance, saying "my priority is to give tax relief to people who are working and paying taxes".[27] Newstart has not been increased since 1994,[28][29] when it was increased by $2.95 per week.[26]

The Anti Poverty Network of South Australia in 2018 with the Newstart Choir recorded a revised version of the It's Time song used by the Australian Labor Party in 1972 to win the election after 23 years of Conservative Government. The song is a campaign to the Australian Labor Party to commit if elected at the next federal election to raising Newstart.[30]

In September 2018, the base Newstart rate was raised by $2.20 per week.[31]

In 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, to assist people in isolation, and to encourage Australia's economic recovery, supplementary payments were added to the basic welfare payments. An additional A$550 per-fortnight 'Coronavirus Supplement' was paid for six months starting on 27 April, until 24 September 2020.[32][33]

On 20 July it was announced that the Supplement would be extended, but in altered form, beyond 24 September.[34] After 24 September the rate was reduced to $250 per fortnight. On 1 December it reduced to $150 per fortnight. The Supplement is scheduled to cease after 31 March 2021.[35]

The Coronavirus Supplement was paid to recipients of:[36]

• JobSeeker Payment, Partner Allowance, Widow Allowance, Sickness Allowance and Wife Pension
• Youth Allowance for job seekers
• Youth Allowance for students and apprentices
• Austudy for students and apprentices
• ABSTUDY for students getting Living Allowance
• Parenting Payment partnered and single
• Farm Household Allowance
• Special Benefit

In addition there was also a once-off $750 Economic Support Payment (ESP) paid from late March to eligible JobSeeker Payment and other recipients. A second ESP was only available to those who did not receive the Coronavirus Supplement.[36][37]

Youth Allowance is an income support payment available to unemployed young people aged 16 to 21 (aged 18 to 24 if a full-time student and Australian Apprentices). Youth Allowance recipients are considered to either be dependent on a caregiver(s), or independent. The underlying philosophy of Youth Allowance is that legal guardians are responsible for supporting their children where they have the means if that young person has not lived independently from them.

Dependent recipients are subject to the Parental Income Test[38] and Family Assets Test, unless a parent is in receipt of a specified income support payment themselves. A dependent Youth Allowance recipients may be exempt from the Parental Income Test if their parent is in receipt of an income support payment themselves. A dependent recipient's rate of payment will be reduced as a result of parental income above the parental income free area, although the parental income free area can be increased by sibling concessions.

Dependent Youth Allowance recipients may also be subject to the Family Actual Means Test (FAMT)[39] which applies where the parent is self-employed, involved in a trust or company or several other categories. The rationale behind the FAMT is that the taxable income on which Youth Allowance is normally based may not accurately reflect the true financial means of parents in these categories. It asks for details of the family's spending on living expenses during the relevant tax year and extrapolates an equivalent notional taxable income from this. Sole traders involved in primary production and parents receiving drought assistance such as Exceptional Circumstances Relief Payment are exempt.

All Youth Allowance recipients are subject to the Personal Income Test, which takes into account any income they may earn through part-time or casual work. If an independent Youth Allowance customer has a partner, then their income will be included under the Partner Income Test.

Youth Allowance has lower payment rates for recipients who live with a parent or guardian compared to those who live away from home. Recipients living 'away from home' may also be eligible for Rent Assistance.

Fifteen-year-olds can also receive Youth Allowance if they are defined as independent and are over the school leaving age in the state of residence. The school leaving age is 17 in all states and territories of Australia.

Youth Allowance was introduced from July 1998 and replaced Youth Training Allowance and Newstart Allowance for job seekers under 21 and AUSTUDY for students under 25.

In 2009 a number of significant changes to Youth Allowance were announced in the Federal Budget. Some of the proposed changes included introducing new scholarships for university students, and changes to the independence criteria and Parental Income Test. These changes were passed by Parliament on 17 March 2010. The changes will be implemented over a number of years, beginning with the introduction of new scholarships from 1 April 2010.[40]

In the 2011–12 Budget, the Australian Government announced that from 1 July 2012, Youth Allowance (other) will be extended to 21-year-olds (currently 21-year-olds are eligible for Newstart Allowance). Twenty-one-year-olds who are on Newstart Allowance, or who have applied for it, by 1 July 2012 will not be affected by the change.[41]

The Austudy Payment was originally known as the AUSTUDY Scheme, an all-ages study allowance, but since the introduction of Youth Allowance (see above) it has been reserved for the over-25s. To qualify, one must be an Australian resident, over 25, and studying full-time at an approved education institution. However, students who were receiving a Youth Allowance prior to turning 25 and are still pursuing the same course of study continue to receive a Youth Allowance until they finish (or otherwise terminate) their course.

Unlike Youth Allowance, Austudy recipients are considered to be independent and are not subject to the Parental Income Test, Family Assets Test and the Family Actual Means Test. As part of the 2007 Australian federal budget, Austudy Payment recipients are eligible for Rent Assistance from 1 January 2008. Prior to 1 January 2008, Rent Assistance was not payable with Austudy. Like most Centrelink payments, Austudy Payments are subject to a personal and/or partner income and assets test.

ABSTUDY (The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Study Assistance Scheme) is a welfare payment for Indigenous Australians undergoing some form of study. All Indigenous students at secondary or tertiary institutions, as well as those studying by correspondence, and primary students who turned 14 prior to 1 January of their current year of study. To qualify as Indigenous, a student must be of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent by Centrelink standards and be a current Australian citizen. ABSTUDY is tailored according to income tests, and the status of partners, guardians, and dependent children.

Whilst this payment is administered through Centrelink, the payment is made under ABSTUDY Policy. The responsibility for ABSTUDY Policy rests with the Minister of Education and the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, and is not contained within the Social Security Act 1991.

Provides income support for people who suffer a long-term disability, which in the opinion of an assessor they will not recover from in the next two years, and which will render them unable to work or participate in a training activity enabling them to work. The basic rate for a single person is A$782.20 (as at March 2015); different rates apply to persons under 18 with no children, and to couples, married, de facto or in a same-sex relationship. The payment is income and assets-tested. However, if an applicant is permanently blind, they can receive DSP without income and assets tests, and without needing to prove any inability to work, etc. DSP can take a while to process, so as a temporary measure claimants are placed on another payment (e.g. Newstart with a medical certificate to cover the activity tests) while the payment is being assessed; once granted it is backdated to the claim date at the higher DSP rate.

In the 2011 Australian federal budget, there were changes introduced to the Disability Support Pension, including that people under the age of 35 would be placed onto the Newstart Allowance for the first 18 months. Furthermore, the eligibility criteria for the DSP became more strict under the Gillard Government.[42]

Patrick McClure has of January 2014 been appointed by the Abbott Government to a review targeting benefits on people in receipt of Newstart Allowance and the Disability Support Pension reporting in February 2014.[22] Eligibility criteria for the DSP has been made more strict, and unsuccessful claimants can only receive the Newstart Allowance, which pays $170 less per week. According to ACOSS, between 2010 and 2016 there was a large drop in successful claims to the DSP.[43]

A Sickness Allowance is paid for those currently suffering an illness, injury, or disability (short-term i.e. less than two years), are employed, and have no access to leave or have used all their leave. It is paid under the Newstart system without an Activity Test. Sickness Allowance is equal to the Newstart Allowance but only one of these payments can be claimed (you don't get both). In order to be granted a Sickness Allowance you must be registered with Centrelink, which includes reporting your earned income each fortnight through your my.gov.au account. You automatically cease being eligible for either payment if your earned income exceeds the allowance-rate over three consecutive fortnightly reporting periods. Once ineligible you become subject to a waiting period before being paid any applicable welfare payment (whether it be Newstart or Sickness, or any other payment). This waiting period, known as the exclusion period is generally six weeks however can be up to ten weeks in which you will have to survive on your own, without any government benefits. This waiting/exclusion period is not backdated, so any payment approved by Centrelink will start only once the exclusion period is exhausted.

A Carer Payment is made to those providing a level of care to someone who is ill, injured or has a disability. A medical certificate and other supporting documentation is required. Centrelink does not offer any related services for Carers, nor does it provide any other support or welfare follow-up, nor does it carry out any process to ensure, or validate, actual service delivery. Carers are wholly responsible for their caring duties which is negotiated between the Carer and Caree' on an individual and personal-needs basis.

A payment for those who are principal carers of dependent children under the age of 6 for partnered customers and children under the age of 8 for single customers. Parenting Payment Partnered is classified as an allowance and Parenting Payment Single is classified as a pension.

A controversial decision by the Labor party in 2006 and 2013, to transfer sole parents to the lower Newstart payment, has placed sole parents well below the poverty line. Welfare groups have reported these parents, 82.3% of which are women (ABS 2011), are turning to prostitution (because of the cash in hand options), have given up their education and are sleeping in their cars. This decision was made as an incentive for parents to seek work, as 57% of primary residential mothers work and 70% of primary residential fathers work (ABS 2011). With one quarter of single parent households headed by a single parent being 896,542 families (17.7% male & 82.3% female, ABS 2011)

Parenting Payment Partnered uses an individual and a partner income test to determine the rate of payment with benefit withdrawal rates of 60 cents in the dollar (as of 1 July 2007) on income over the legislated limits. A partner's gross earnings are assessed as shared, regardless of individual tax already paid. If, for example, the breadwinner is currently paying 30 per cent personal tax, the effective marginal tax rate (EMTR) after benefit withdrawal is 90 percent of earnings above the legislated limit (the EMTR prior to 1 July 2007 is 100% as the benefit withdrawal rate is 70% of the partner's earnings above the legislated income limit).

Income support recipients who are classed as non-homeowners and pay more than a required amount of board or rent for accommodation are eligible for Rent Assistance payments. This payment is paid as part of the income support payment. Verification of the rent details is required, either a lease or by completing a Rent Certificate every six months. The amount of rent assistance a recipient is eligible for depends on the amount of rent one is paying. The basic rate for a single person with no children and not sharing accommodation is as follows. As at 28 January 2010, Rent Assistance begins to be paid when a renter's fortnightly rent is in excess of A$99.40. For every dollar in excess of this amount, Rent Assistance pays A$0.75, up to a maximum of A$111.80 per fortnight. The maximum amount payable is lower for those sharing accommodation, in which case it is A$74.53. Different rates apply to couples, couples separated by illness, couples temporarily separated and singles and couples with dependent children. An example of an income support payment is the Newstart Allowance which comprises a base rate plus rent assistance. An "income support payment" is an umbrella term (or classification of payment) which is sometimes used instead of detailing the name of the particular payment. It does not represent a payment of its own but could mean any one of Centrelinks' welfare payments, e.g. the Newstart Allowance is an income support payment.[44]

A payment of A$6.00 per fortnight for those receiving certain Centrelink payments, to help cover the cost of prescription medicines. The amount covers the cost of one prescription per fortnight for a concession card holder eligible for the concessional rate of medicines (A$5.90 per script from 1 January 2013). This payment is only given if you are able to prove to Centrelink that you require prescribed medication. A Centrelink Medical Certificate can be obtained online from my.gov.au or from a branch, which will need to be filled out by a registered medical professional and then submitted to Centrelink for consideration. This allowance can drop-off on its own so recipients must call Centrelink to notify them of this, when or if this occurs. Undercalculated payments can take one business day to correct however an underpayment is more likely to be paid in your next fortnightly pay with your regular entitlement.[45] which are covered under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, which covers most prescription medicines available.[46]

A payment issued quarterly to eligible customers receiving pension payments, to help cover the cost of telephone bills. Eligible customers must have a telephone service subscribed in their name to be eligible for Telephone Allowance. There are two rates payable: a basic rate of A$23.40 and a higher rate of A$35.20. Newstart Allowance Recipients are not eligible.[47]

Family Tax Benefit is a per-child payment made through the Department of Human Services to the people with at least 35 per cent of care for a child. Family Tax Benefit is income-tested on a family's adjusted taxable income in the given financial year. Income support recipients are exempt from the income test and are entitled to the maximum rate of payment.

Payments can be paid in fortnightly instalments or as a lump sum payment at the end of the year. For Family Tax Benefit paid in instalments, the income test is based on an estimate of adjusted taxable income that is reconciled after the recipient has lodged their tax return. The reconciliation process compares the estimated income with their actual income.

• Centrelink debt is accrued for overpayments, when customers underestimate their income.
• A top-up payment is granted at the end of the year, when customers overestimate their income which can be used to repay outstanding Centrelink debt.

Childless persons, or non-parents, are not entitled to the Family Tax Benefit payments.[48]

Family Tax benefit Part B is paid based on the lower of the recipient and their partner's income, or, for a single parent at the maximum rate.

Maternity Immunisation Allowance is paid to parents whose children who have received all immunisations specified by the national immunisation schedule by the time they are 2 years old. Alternatively, if the parents object to immunisation on any grounds and inform Centrelink of this, they may also receive this allowance. The allowance ceased on 1 July 2012.[49]

Child Care Benefit assists Australian parents with the cost of approved and registered child care. It is a means tested payment and is based on the recipient's taxable income; low income families receive the highest rate of Child Care Benefit.

The Australian Government spent approximately $2.1 billion on Child Care Benefit to assist families with the cost of child care in the financial year ending 30 June 2011.[50]

In May 2012, the Australian Government abolished the Education Tax Refund (ETR) that allowed families to claim a refund for education expenses through the Australian Tax Office (ATO). The Schoolkids Bonus replaced the ETR from 1 January 2013. The Schoolkids Bonus aimed to assist families and students with the costs of education for children in primary and secondary school. The School Kids Bonus is paid in 2 equal instalments each year in January and July.[51]

Legislation ultimately governs the decision making process, and Centrelink policy guidelines provide the lens through which legislation is interpreted by Centrelink Customer Service Advisers (CSAs). However, notwithstanding legislation and policy, there are still many areas in which significant discretion is afforded to the decision maker, which may be subject to internal and external review.

Centrelink possesses a prescribed two-tiered system of internal review. The initial stage is the ODM Review, where the matter is brought back to the CSA for reconsideration.[54] This is a wholly intra-office process and functions as an initial check on the decision, and the appeal progresses further from the ODM only if necessary. Many reviews are due to legislative changes, administrative errors, provision of new customer documentation, or customer disagreement with the decision. There is also the opportunity for the customer to make a formal written complaint. However, many individuals may not wish to have the same CSA make another decision, which may even lead to confusion as to whether internal review has actually taken place.

Once the ODM review has been completed it should contain the relevant legislative provisions, any new information considered, and a determination stating whether the original decision has been set aside, affirmed or varied.

If the individual is not satisfied, an Authorised Review Officer (ARO), an officer delegated review powers from the Secretary for the purposes of social security law, may affirm, vary, or set aside the original decision.[55] Although an employee of the Centrelink, an ARO is not to defend ODM decisions as it is a strong principle that the ARO is independent of the situation and has no previous involvement in the case. Nevertheless, AROs also look at legislation with the same policy guidelines as CSAs.

A customer dissatisfied with an internal review of a decision may apply to the Social Security Appeals Tribunal (SSAT) [56] to review a decision affirmed, varied or set aside by internal review, subject to some exceptions. The SSAT generally has the same powers as the Secretary, and may affirm, vary, set aside and substitute a decision or return the matter to Centrelink with recommendations. SSAT hearings are generally informal, confidential and not bound by the Laws of Evidence.

Experience has indicated that at the SSAT more weighting goes towards the legislation as opposed to policy guidelines. Welfare advocacy groups such as the Welfare Rights Centre are often involved in providing legal help to individuals affected by Centrelink decisions. There is no Welfare Rights Centre in South Australia so complaints are to be raised with Centrelink directly.

As of 1 July 2015, the SSAT is no longer is a separate tribunal. Alongside the Migration Review Tribunal and the Refugee Review Tribunal, the SSAT has instead merged with the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT).[57] Decisions deemed reviewable by the ARO are now heard in the Social Services and Child Support Division of the AAT. The primary functions of the SSAT as the first tier of the review process have been converted and are now known as the 'AAT first review'.[58] Therefore, the traditional two-tier review process has morphed in light of the amalgamation but it has nevertheless been preserved within the AAT.

2019, SACAT South Australian Civil Administrative Tribunal deals with rental properties and issues between renters and landlords and agents, as well as deals with various licensing matters and handles reviews of mental health treatment orders including investigating and revoking involuntary psychiatric confinement orders, commonly enforced by the authoritarian Government.

A decision may be reviewed by the AAT on AAT 'first review', after which it can be reviewed again on AAT 'second review' if an applicant is unhappy after the first review. Further appeals (on questions of law only) are available to the Federal Court and High Court.

The Commonwealth Ombudsman does not conduct a merits review (as would the ARO, SSAT or AAT), but considers the administrative decision making process employed by Centrelink to reach the decision or carry out the action complained of.

Where the Ombudsman concludes that there has been a deficiency in Centrelink's action (for examples[59]) the Ombudsman may make recommendations to Centrelink for remedial action. This may result in Centrelink changing their decision, or providing a better explanation of their decision.

Investigations by the Ombudsman are usually result from a complaint about a decision or action of Centrelink, and in the process of an investigation the Ombudsman is entitled to view Centrelink records and ask questions of Centrelink staff. While the Ombudsman does not have coercive powers to make Centrelink change a decision or act in a certain way, recommendations made by the Ombudsman are rarely rejected.