THE rate at which people are rejected for a disability support pension is the highest in a decade, and the number on the $17 billion welfare scheme has finally started to drop.
Social Services Minister Scott Morrison, who was given the difficult task of “stopping the bludgers” in December last year, will reveal the remarkable turnaround today.
Approval rates for the scheme have fallen from 64.5 per cent of applicants under Labor in 2008-9 to 36.9 per cent last year.
The Abbott government approved 41,832 applications last year compared to a 91,131 annual high when the $782.20-a-fortnight scheme crippled the welfare budget under Labor.
Hit man... First the boats, now Scott Morrison’s stopped the bludgers
When the Abbott government came to power, DSP recipients were predicted to bust the one million barrier within years. But The Daily Telegraph can reveal the number of Australians on the DSP has dropped from 827,460 in 2011-12 to 814,391 last financial year. GO SCOTTY
The remarkable change, which encourages Australians who are able to work to do so, comes after the government announced sweeping reforms to the DSP that forced applicants to see a Commonwealth-appointed doctor rather than go “doctor shopping” for GPs who were eager to approve applications.
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