CHAPTER 6 | how the Ombudsman helped people

Mr A complained that the ATO had not taken adequate action to recover unpaid superannuation contributions from his previous employer.

The relevant legislation prevents the ATO from disclosing to an employee the particulars of any action that the ATO has taken, although the ATO is authorised to provide information to the Ombudsman. It is inappropriate for us to pass on information that is otherwise protected; however, we do seek to satisfy ourselves that action by the ATO is consistent with its guidelines and processes.

In this case, we were able to assure Mr P that, although he had not yet seen any results, we were satisfied that the ATO was taking appropriate action.

Mr J complained about the conduct of AFP members during a raid on his client's home under the new counter-terrorism laws.

The matter was referred to AFP Internal Investigations. The AFP report concluded that the complaints about the AFP's conduct of the raid and the search and seizure of documents and property were unsubstantiated.

Our own review of the report confirmed that the AFP members were sensitive in their use of the new powers and alert to their obligations. We provided a detailed explanation to Mr J, who has not raised any further concerns.