Rudd sicks Swan on ATO IT delays

in brief Prime Minister Kevin Rudd today said he would get Treasurer Wayne Swan to look into Australian Taxation Office (ATO) IT problems causing the hold up of tax refunds.

Kevin Rudd
(Credit: Commonwealth Government)

"What I'd strongly suggest is that I get the Treasurer on to your program and go through the complaints which have been made, and how they'll be rectified," Rudd told 774 ABC Melbourne when asked about small businesses having cash flow problems because of tax refund delays.

The ATO has faced difficulties processing tax returns following the completion of the income tax component of its $800 million Change Program IT upgrade.

Earlier this month, there were 200,000 stockpiled assessments which the office was holding onto while it fixed data integrity problems. The taxation office believed it had repaired the problem and was working on reducing the stockpile.