Sylvia Else wrote:
> Yvonne wrote:
>> Sylvia Else wrote:
>>> Warning: Mild rant content. Single parental guidance is advised for
>>> younger readers.
>>>
>>> As regular readers will know, I have for a long time been a 'client'
>>> (CSA's word) of the Child Support Agency. In years gone by about the
>>> only correspondence I received from them was the stuff they're
>>> required by law to send in relation to child support assessments.
>>>
>>> Over the last couple of years, though, they've taken to sending out
>>> material that discusses wider aspects of the CSA's operations. An
>>> example can be seen here
>>>
>>> http://www.csa.gov.au/newsletter/pdf/CSMattersAugust2008.pdf
>>>
>>> I regard this material is largely propaganda in nature, and have told
>>> the CSA not to send me stuff that they're not required by law to send.
>>>
>>> They didn't act on my instruction, so I called them up. The officer
>>> initially claimed that they were indeed required by law to send it,
>>> but when I asked for a citation of the specific legislation, she put
>>> me on hold for half an hour, and then came back and admitted that
>>> there was
>>> none.
>>> So I made a formal complaint to their complaints department, to which
>>> they didn't respond.
>>>
>>> Then I took it up with the Ombudsman. The Ombudsmand has replied
>>> "Advice was subsequently provided [by the CSA] that in balancing the
>>> obligation to keep clients of a service fully informed as to their
>>> rights and
>>> obligations against the desire to receive such notifications and (sic)
>>> it would be generally be (sic) expected that such materials be
>>> provided and the client exercise their fee (sic) choice as to whether
>>> or not
>>> they read them."
>>>
>>> On that basis the Ombudsman has declined to pursue the matter further.
>>> Not that that actually makes much difference. From previous
>>> experience, even if the Ombudsman had sided fully with me, the CSA
>>> would have talked about needing to change their computer system, and
>>> having other priorities, etc, and would never get around to
>>> complying. The issue of
>>> them starting letters to me with "Dear Sylvia" (they're not my friend
>>> - "Dear Ms Else" would be the appropriate form) has been live since
>>> 2000. It remains unresolved.
>>>
>>> So the CSA considers it reasonable to send junk mail to people. If
>>> those people don't like it, they needn't read the suff, but can
>>> otherwise lump it.
>>> I've looked at the Privacy Act, but the thing is so toothless that it
>>> pretty much allows a government agency to do what they like.
>>>
>>> At the rate things are going, I won't be able to stop the CSA annoying
>>> me before they stop annoying me anyway.
>>
>>
>> The usual remedy is a nice cup of tea, a Bex, and a good lie down. HTH
>>
>
> Bex contained caffeine. Somehow I feel that caffeine and a good lie down
> don't go together.
>
> Sylvia.
And phenacetin originaly |