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Social
Security Legislation Amendment (Public Housing Tenants' Support) Bill 2013
Introduced into the House of
Representatives on 29 May 2013
Portfolio:
Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs
Summary of committee view
1.1
The committee
seeks further information as to whether compulsorily directing how social
security payments are to be spent is consistent with the right to privacy, and
why it is necessary to enable deductions from a person's social security
benefits for up to 12 months after a person has satisfied their debt for
the amount of rent or household utilities.
1.2
The committee
also seeks further information as to whether the compulsory deduction of social
security payments from public housing tenants, but not from other social
security recipients (who may also be in rent/mortgage arrears) is consistent
with the right to non-discrimination.
Overview
1.3
This
bill seeks to amend the Social Security (Administration) Act 1999 and
the A New Tax System (Family Assistance) (Administration) Act 1999 to
enable public housing providers to apply to the Secretary of the Department of
Human Services to authorise the compulsory deduction of rent and household
utility payments from certain social security and family benefit payments, if a
person's payments under their lease are in arrears above a prescribed minimum.
1.4
Under
the bill, the Minister will have the power to specify someone as a 'public
housing lessor' (and therefore as someone able to apply for the deductions to
be made) only if satisfied that the public housing lessor has appropriate
processes in place to enable review of decisions relating to amounts due and
payable and in dealing with matters relating to leases of accommodation.[11] Before an order for a
deduction can be made, the person must owe an amount that exceeds the
prescribed minimum (yet to be specified) and the public housing lessor must
have taken reasonable action to recover the amount.[12] An order for these deductions
will cease if the person leaves the accommodation, the request is cancelled, or
the debt is paid, however, even once the debt is paid the compulsory deduction
can continue for an additional 12 months (as long as the person affected is
notified and given an opportunity to make representations to the lessor about
this).[13]
Compatibility
with human rights
1.5
The
bill is accompanied by a self-contained statement of compatibility that states
that the bill engages the right to social security,[14] the right to an adequate
standard of living,[15]
the right to self-determination[16]
and the right to privacy.[17]
It concludes:
The Social
Security Legislation Amendment (Public Housing Tenants’ Support) Bill 2013 is
compatible with human rights. The Housing Payment Deduction Scheme will advance
the protection of human rights by ensuring that a proportion of social welfare
payments are spent on housing costs for people who are having difficulty
meeting their obligations under their public housing leases and risking their
tenancies. To the extent that it may limit human rights, those limitations are
reasonable, necessary and proportionate to achieving the legitimate objective
of preventing evictions due to arrears and debt, which may force a person, and
their children, into homelessness.[18]
1.6
The statement of
compatibility states that the objective of the scheme is to reduce the capacity
of individuals and families living in public housing, to accumulate large
amounts of arrears, which could put them at risk of eviction and possible homelessness.
It notes that the Secretary 'currently deducts public housing rent and other
costs from persons’ social welfare payments, and pays amounts to public housing
authorities with the customer’s consent, under the (voluntary) Rent Deduction
Scheme'.[19]
The difference with this scheme is that the deductions will be made
compulsorily.
1.7
The statement of
compatibility provides no evidence as to the current rate of people in public
housing who are in arrears with their rent or household utility payments and
how many may be at risk of eviction, and possible homelessness. However, the
explanatory memorandum notes that State Housing Authorities advise there are
around 600 evictions from public housing a year due to non-payment of rent, and
many more leave each year owing rent.[20]
Right
to privacy
1.8
The statement of
compatibility recognises that the bill engages the right to privacy in article
17 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), but
confines its discussion of this to the information provided by a requesting public housing lessor for
the purpose of administering the scheme. The committee notes that the right to
privacy may not be limited solely to the right to respect for private and
personal information. While privacy is a difficult term to define, is has been
said that:
Privacy can
be defined as the presumption that individuals should have an area of
autonomous development, interaction and liberty, a “private sphere” with or
without interaction with others, free from State intervention and from
excessive unsolicited intervention by other uninvited individuals.[21]
1.9
The committee
considers that compulsorily directing how social security payments are to be
spent engages, in addition to the right to social security, the right to
privacy, insofar as it interferes with the personal autonomy of public housing
tenants to choose how to spend their benefits. This is not an absolute right
and can be limited provided
that the limitation is (i) aimed at achieving a purpose which is legitimate;
(ii) based on reasonable and objective criteria, and (iii) proportionate to the
aim to be achieved.
1.10
The
committee intends to write to the Minister for Housing and Homelessness to seek
further information as to:
(a) whether
compulsorily directing how social security payments are to be spent is
consistent with the right to privacy and the right to social security; and
(b) why it is
necessary to enable deductions from a person's social security benefits for up
to 12 months after a person has satisfied their debt for the amount of
rent or household utilities.[22]
Non-discrimination
1.11
The committee
notes that the bill applies only to public housing tenants and does not apply
to persons renting privately or persons owing mortgages, who may also be in
arrears with their rent/mortgage and are in receipt of social security
benefits. Article 26 of the ICCPR prohibits discrimination on any ground and
article 2 requires that the rights recognised in the ICCPR are to be granted
without distinction of any kind. To be consistent
with the rights to equality and non-discrimination, differential treatment must be demonstrated to have an
objective and reasonable justification.
1.12
The committee
intends to write to the Minister for Housing and Homelessness to seek further
information as to whether the compulsory deduction of social security payments
from public housing tenants, but not from other social security recipients (who
may also be in rent/mortgage arrears), is consistent with the right to
non-discrimination.
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