• Australia to pay A$475 million to victims of the Robodebt scheme.
• The settlement may be the largest class action resolution in Australia's history.
• Robodebt wrongly demanded repayments from hundreds of thousands of welfare recipients.
• The compensation reflects harm caused to vulnerable citizens under an illegal system.
• Legal and administrative costs could boost the settlement to A$548 million.

The Australian government announced a further A$475 million ($310 million) in compensation for victims of the illegal Robodebt welfare recovery scheme, marking it as the largest class action settlement in Australian legal history if approved by the courts. This program, operational from 2016 to 2019, falsely claimed debts from welfare recipients using a flawed automated algorithm, affecting about 440,000 people, some of whom suffered extreme distress, including suicides, due to its demands, as stated by Attorney-General Michelle Rowland. The government acknowledged the scheme as "illegal and immoral," according to BBC and AA.

This latest compensation comes after a royal commission revealed that the government had unlawfully raised A$1.7 billion ($1.1 billion) in debts from vulnerable citizens. In 2020, an initial settlement of A$1.8 billion was reached, which included debt wipes and refunds but lacked compensation for suffering. Rowland emphasized that the new settlement reflects the harm done to victims of the "disastrous" Robodebt scheme, according to TRT Global and AA.

Attorney-General Rowland reiterated that settling this claim is the just and fair thing to do, as the settlement addresses the serious ramifications of the Robodebt scheme. Victims and their representatives welcomed the settlement as it brings closure to a painful chapter for many affected individuals, while legal fees and administration costs may elevate the payout total to A$548 million, marking a significant moment for accountability in public administration, according to BBC, TRT Global, and AA.