Joint Four Corners and Fairfax ATO Investigation – “Mongrel Bunch of Bastards“
In April, 2018 the ABC’s Adele Ferguson reported “Mongrel Bunch of Bastards”.
The investigation found that the tax office doesn’t always play fair and is breaching the community’s trust.
Taking on the extraordinary powers of the Tax Office.
“You might say that murderers have more rights than tax payers.” Tax barrister
The Australia Taxation Office is a formidable enforcer with extraordinary powers. It can raid your home or business without a warrant, it can compel you to answer questions and treat you as guilty until proven innocent.
“(It) can effectively act like a judge, jury and executioner all rolled up into one. That’s the problem.” Tax barrister
While there’s strong public support for a crackdown on major multinational corporations to force them to pay their fair share, there is growing concern that the Tax Office is targeting people a long way from the big end of town.
“They chase low-hanging fruit, people who are being honest and upright, and they whack them with a huge bill and then chase them.” Small business lobbyist
In a major joint Four Corners/Fairfax investigation, reporter Adele Ferguson puts the actions of the Tax Office under the microscope, examining how it uses its extensive powers.
“How can you describe someone who’s trying to destroy your livelihood and destroy your way of life? I’d call that evil.” Business operator
Months in the making, this investigation shows what happens when a taxpayer finds themselves in the cross hairs of the ATO.
“There’s an agenda that’s going on in there, and the Australian public know nothing about it.” Business operator
It examines whether the ATO is playing by the rules and acting fairly and ethically.
“Dealing with the ATO, I’ve never come across such a mongrel bunch of bastards in my entire life.” Business operator
Tax Barrister Issues Warning
Tax Barrister Graeme Halperin, who has been practising tax law for 30 years, says he tells his clients not to apply for research and development grants. “It’s effectively putting a target on your back,” he says. “I would basically tell clients not to bother engaging in R&D in this country, notwithstanding the government talks up its commitment to R&D in this country.”
He believes the ATO is getting worse. “They are much tougher on their position on penalties,” he says. “Where originally you might have ended up with a 5 or 10 per cent penalty, and then it rose to 25 per cent for lack of reasonable care, typically these days I will see penalties of 50 per cent, 75 per cent, 90 per cent, where effectively the primary tax bill has been doubled.”
You can read about more stories from Aussies who have been targeted for lodging R&D grants, some have been charged with criminal offences and prosecuted facing jail time.
“Mongrel bunch of bastards”, reported by Adele Ferguson went to air on Monday 9th April 2018. It can also be seen on ABC NEWS channel on ABC iview and at abc.net.au/4corners for replay.
To access the full story, click on the link here:
ATO Staff Sacked for Exposing Corruption
In 2017, prior to the Four Corners Investigation going live, former ATO employee Mr Shamir went public about the corruption and fraud on taxpayers.
“I have not been able to get a job for two years,” said Mr Shamir, who was sacked in 2015 after alleging that senior managers had cancelled taxpayer refunds en masse without justification.
Another former ATO employee Stephen Strelecky, said silencing dissent was the “modus operandi”, claiming tactics for keeping public servants quiet have included levelling false complaints against outspoken employees and referring them for psychiatric assessment.
You can read the full article here:
https://www.thenewdaily.com.au/work/2017/06/07/ato-corruption-claims
The Investigation Continues
Six years after the Four Corners investigation into ATO misconduct, minimal progress has been made. In fact, it seems that taxation officers are more frequently involved in unethical activities, such as fabricating allegations, creating fraudulent debts, dismantling businesses, and forcing liquidations and bankruptcies through malicious prosecutions. The home page highlights two taxation officers as key players in this misconduct, with further investigations underway.
Australian Newspapers
On 28 January 2025, a journalist Robert Gottliebsen from the Australian published a story about the ATO, reporting that Australia has one of the most unfair taxation collection systems in the Western world, and its basic unfairness is beginning to impact our industrial base. The author says:
“All three major political parties in opposition have recognised the unfairness in Australia’s tax collection rules, but once they gain office they are “snowed” by the Australian Taxation Office and fear embracing fairness will hit revenues. The reverse is more likely.”
You can read the full story here:
Have Your Say
If you’ve been negatively impacted by the ATO you can Have Your Say by telling your story. Real Change Requires Your Voice.
If you been investigated and prosecuted by criminal investigator Anthony Rains, you can tell your story. If you have been pursued by former Director of Debt Ross Burns or any other taxation officer, you can Have Your Say by filling out the ‘contact’ page on this website. Your information will be handled with complete confidentiality. Contact page here…