So troubled multinational Serco's staff are going to answer phone calls made to Centrelink in a Turnbull Government pilot program?

Multinational Serco Group plc registered in England and Wales, with revenue in 2016 of an est. $5 billion and an underlying trading profit of est. $139 million, has made the news again.

One of its subsidiaries, SERCO CITIZEN SERVICES PTY LTD¹ ABN:89 062 943 640, won this $53.75 million federal government contract commencing 7 September 2017:

CN ID: CN3460117

Agency: Department of Human Services

Publish Date: 11-Oct-2017

Category: Temporary personnel services

Contract Period:

7-Sep-2017 to 29-Oct-2019

Contract Value (AUD): $53,752,454.80

Description: Centrelink Call Centre Enhancements Initiative

On 11 October 2017 it was reported that the Minister for Human Services Alan Tudge stated this contract was for a pilot commencing in late October 2017 would help reduce Centrelink call wait times.

An est. 250 Melbourne-based Serco staff will take calls about welfare payments in the three-year pilot program.

The minister’s office stated: "Under the partnership arrangement, Serco's staff will be fully trained and will comply with all Commonwealth government privacy and security requirements".

Of course Serco will comply, Minister.

Just as it has on every single contract in the past......

Stolen Laptop Exposes Personal Data on 207,000 Army Reservists. Serco held the data on reservists as part of its contract with the U.S. Army’s Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation division. As a result, Dahms said, some of the data on the missing laptop may belong to dependents and spouses of U.S. Army reservists, 13 May 2010

Serco's paper trailer raises accountability questions. Crikey has taken a closer look at the extent that Serco contracts outsources to other companies and can reveal that millions of dollars from the detention contract has ended up in some startling places, 1 November 2010

Serco employee suspected of Victoria Police breach. Man accused of adjusting 67,541 traffic infringement records, 15 April 2011

Contract breaches by the operator of Australia's detention centres are incurring 'unsustainable' fines, 13 July May 2011

Serco operates and maintains a surprisingly large and diverse range of services in both the UK and Australia, as well as in several other countries. Its website lists some examples of the scale of its operations including: traffic management systems covering more than 17,500kms of roads worldwide, managing 192,000 square miles of airspace in five countries, managing education authorities on behalf of local governments, and providing defence support services worldwide.[2] Serco also manages a number of hospitals, prisons and detention centres, and is involved in a host of other services.[3]…..Focussing on the company Serco, there have been numerous reports of instances where its service provision has been sub-standard, high-cost, has eliminated diversity, or has lacked accountability. Putting this focus on Serco’s faults is not to say that it is any more prone to failures than other corporations in this area, or that it is always unsuccessful in its service provision. Rather, the point is to show clearly the dangers of privatisation, and why it must not be accepted as a universal good, 7 March 2012

Computer security breach at Serco affects 123,000 Thrift Savings Plan participants, 25 May 2012

Gaol escapes blamed on Serco Pacific cost cutting on $1.8 billion Australian government contract, 29 May 2013

Sexual abuse allegations corroborated at Yarl's Wood immigration centre run by Serco, 22 September 2013

Sources in the justice system blamed the foul-up on staffing issues at Serco. One said: "This sort of thing happens every week." The seven-year PECS deal has turned into a horror show for Serco. It faces allegations that it doctored transfer records to flatter its performance, with five Serco staff under investigation by the City of London police. That is not its only problem contract. There are separate claims that, along with rival outsourcer G4S, it overcharged taxpayers on a deal to put electronic tags on criminals, 17 October 2013

Private contractors Serco has agreed to repay £68.5million to the taxpayer after over-charging for tagging criminals. The firm was investigated by the Ministry of Justice over claims that together with rival company G4S it over-charged for tens of thousands of criminals, including those who had left the country, been returned to prison or even died, 19 December 2013

Outsourcing giant Serco is embroiled in a fresh misuse of public funds scandal after a company it set up overcharged NHS hospitals millions of pounds, 27 August 2014

Serco is failing, but is kept afloat thanks to Australia's refugee policy. It’s a sign of the times that a company like Serco, with murky financial statements masking its true economic shape, is continually rewarded for failure by new and larger contracts, 11 November 2014

Serco turned 'blind eye' to corruption in UK immigration jail, court hears, 26 February 2015

Serco has brought a culture of profiteering, bullying, intimidation and corruption to Mt Eden prison, a Whangarei barrister says.The comments come as controversy surrounds the private company that operates the prison, and with Corrections boss Ray Smith revealing a third incident at the facility has left him no choice but to seek legal advice in regards to the contract, 24 July 2015

On Monday, Serco was fined $NZ500,000 ($A328,750) and was prohibited from overseeing operations at the correctional facility while an internal investigation took place. The fine came after six disturbing videos — shot on a smartphone and smuggled inside the prison — surfaced on YouTube earlier this month. The videos showed prisoners participating in organised ‘fight clubs’ as large groups of fellow inmates watch on. Inmates were also seen blatantly smoking and drinking alcohol in the videos, which were captured without the knowledge of staff. However, the NZ prison officers union said bosses knew about the fight club for up to 18 months, but did nothing about it, 29 July 2015

A GUARD at the Wickham Point Detention Centre in Darwin has been fired after it was found he was trying to coerce female detainees into having sex with him. Serco, the company contracted to run Australia’s immigration facilities, said in a statement to the NT News that a detainee services officer from Wickham Point was dismissed in late May following two separate complaints from female detainees, 6 August 2015

Fiona Stanley Hospital: dirty theatres, IT woes blamed on Serco, 23 September 2015

A Serco guard at a Melbourne immigration centre has been sacked following allegations he made inappropriate sexual advances towards a female detainee and sexually harassed female guards while on duty, 12 February 2016

High levels of violence and poor conditions in Serco-run UK prison, 9 March 2016

Corruption allegations at a Secro managed prison, 2 June 2016

The scandal of refugees housed in 'slum conditions' in Scotland by Serco sub-contractor, 12 June 2016

Serco shares slide as investor concerns mount over turnround. Revenues and profits fall after hit from lossmaking and terminated contracts, 23 February 2017

Serco officer fired for supplying drugs to Christmas Island detainees,18 July 2017

Serco targets further cost cutting as it seeks to keep its profits on track. Serco boss Rupert Soames has said the company still has costs to cut before it is trading at full strength, as the firm enters the middle stage of its five-year turnaround plan. He said that there were plans to further reduce overheads and make Serco’s processes more efficient, as well as bringing down some of its IT costs. “We’ve still got a lot of costs that we have to get out of the business,” he said, 3 August 2017.

Serco lost the Prisoner Transport contract, its contract to run Wandoo Prison won't be renewed in 2018 and prison will return to public hands, 27 August 2017

Clarence Valley residents may recall that Serco is part of a three-corporation consortium building the new $1.5 billion Grafton gaol.

Footnotes

1. Serco provides care and welfare services, on behalf of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, to people living in Australian onshore immigration centres whilst their visa status is resolved. Since 2009, more than 61,000 individuals have been in our care, representing more than 20 different cultural and linguistically diverse communities. Within the Australian justice system, Serco operates three prisons: the Southern Queensland Correctional Centre (Queensland) with 400 beds, Acacia Prison (Western Australia) with 1400 beds and the Wandoo Reintegration Facility (Western Australia) with 80 beds.

See http://www.serco-ap.com.au/media/206689/serco_socialcare_4pp_a4brochure_may17_final.pdf

Scott Morrison and Serco Australia Pty Ltd

Australian Minister for Immigration and Border Protection Scott Morrison and his department have responsibility for immigration detention centres.

These centres are for people who have overstayed their visa, are in breach of their visa conditions or who have come here without a valid visa. People who are refused entry into Australia at international airports and seaports may also be detained in an immigration detention centre. The centres provide accommodation for medium and high risk detainees and the majority of the population are single adult males.

UK based Serco Group Pty Ltd through its subsidiary Serco Australia Pty Limited has been contracted by the Australian Government to operate the detention centres.

Serco Australia’s principal shareholders are listed in its 2012 Annual Report as:

This is what Serco says of itself:

* Serco is committed to working transparently and in accordance with the laws and financial reporting requirements of the countries in which it operates.

We prepare our financial reports to high standards, ensure that they are properly audited and seek to lodge them in compliance with the relevant requirements and in line with accounting standards.

Serco Group plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange and in accordance with its Rules, publishes Annual Reports and Accounts and Stock Exchange Announcements.

Our Asia Pacific division is made up of a number of companies.

In Australia, Serco operates as Serco Group Pty Limited, comprised of: Serco Australia Pty Limited; Great Southern Railway Holdings Pty Limited; and, Serco Traffic Camera Services (Vic) Pty Ltd. We seek to comply with the Corporations Act in providing special purpose financial reports to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

* In line with our values, Serco is committed to treating people in our care with dignity and respect in a safe and secure environment. Across Australia's network of immigration centres, our staff work hard to ensure the wellbeing of people in administrative detention, and to deliver high quality services.

We provide catering, recreation, education and excursions, manage accommodation, facilities, maintenance, transport and logistics, security, training and procurement. Our employees look after thousands of people in locations all over Australia, responding to their cultural, religious and individual needs.

Community engagement is an important part of our approach. It's beneficial to the welfare of the people we look after, and consistent with our intention to be a good neighbour to those who live in the areas where we work. We also welcome the involvement of external agencies and independent observers, as we believe clear and strong accountability is a key element in successful service delivery.

We seek to innovate, develop and continuously improve in our provision of immigration services, to meet our responsibilities and fulfil our duty of care.

Serco Australia has been in the news recently due to its alleged penny pinching ways with regard to supplying sanitary pads/tampons to female detainees, an allegation of rape at its Christmas Island detention centre, complaints about poor security at Yongah Hill Immigration Detention Centre, dehumanising detainees by using numbers instead of names and making Curtin detainees jump through hoops to access phone calls and then restricting their ability to do so, denying them access to scanning facilities and instituting a complete blackout of Australian television stations.

It is also alleged that it has been price gouging under a contract it has to transport West Australian prisoners and, in 2013 admitted to inappropriate sexual contact between a male guard and female detainee.

Serco Australia’s British parent company is also under fire for the supply of inadequate asylum seeker housing services, and been ordered to repay £68.5m of taxpayers' money after being found to be overcharging for prisoner tagging.

One has to wonder why Morrison and his department continue to support this private company.

Serco operated high security prison in Queensland found to be one of two privately run gaols at risk of significant corruption

This is what Serco says of itself at www.serco.com:

Serco is trusted by governments and organisations around the world to transform and deliver essential services. Employing over 50,000 people, we operate across more than 20 countries in Justice, Immigration, Health, Transport, Defence, and Citizen Services.

Serco provides essential justice services in Australia, New Zealand and the UK, from the safe and secure operation of prisons, young adult, and escorting services, to managing the reintegration of ex-offenders into society. We help governments deliver a more efficient and effective justice system, by employing the best people, getting the basics right, championing service innovations, and forming community partnerships. 

By taking a rehabilitative approach to justice, we help to make it less likely that people will return to the criminal justice system, help to rebuild lives, and reduce the financial and wider costs of crime to the public…….

Serco has been operating correctional services in Australia for almost 15 years. As a prison operator, safety and security is always our first priority. The new Clarence Correctional Centre is our most recent contract, which will begin operations in 2020. Once completed, this 1,700-bed state-of-the-art facility will be the largest correctional centre in Australia. 

The Clarence Correctional Centre is being delivered by the NSW Government in partnership with the Northern Pathways Consortium. To learn more about the project visit northernpathways.com.au.

This is the current reality in Australia…..

Sydney Criminal Lawyers, 28 March 2019:

The Queensland Government has announced that it will spend $111million over the next four years, returning two privately run prisons to state management.

The Arthur Gorrie Correctional Centre and the Southern Queensland Correctional Centre (SQCC), two high-security prisons, are currently run by private operators. 

However the Government will now take over these contracts in response to recommendations from the Crime and Corruption Commission’s Taskforce Flaxton, which last year conducted an investigation into the entire Queensland prison system.

The post-investigation report was scathing as a whole, finding a string of systemic issues, that put prisons ‘at risk of significant corruption.’

These included over-crowding, excessive use of force, misuse of authority, introduction of contraband and inappropriate relationships all within prison walls. The report also found that the number of assaults on staff was higher at privately run facilities, due to lower staff numbers and therefore less supervision.

The South East Queensland Correctional Centre is run by Serco.....

Serco came under fire in 2017 after the release of the Paradise Papers which detailed that Serco’s UK lawyers expressed written concerns that their client had been engaging in fraud, covering up the abuse of detainees at Australian detention centres, and even mishandling radioactive waste. The firm described Serco as a “high-risk” organisation with a “history of problems, failures, fatal errors and overcharging”.

Internationally, the company runs prisons in the UK and New Zealand. In Australia it has been operating for more than 15 years, managing prisons in Western Australia and Queensland as well as 11 immigration centres. It also holds several defence contracts and is currently building a mega-correctional facility near Grafton in New South Wales.

The Clarence Correctional Centre roughly 12 km from Grafton, NSW is due to open in June 2020.

Hopefully UK based Serco Group Pty Ltd through its subsidiary Serco Australia Pty Limited will by then have addressed all the issues in its chequered past.

Turnbull Government has just placed a multinational corportion with an appalling human rights record at the first contact interface with the National Disability Insurance Scheme

“It has a history of problems, failures, fatal errors and overcharging”  [Senior Appleby compliance officer quoted in The Guardian on the subject of Serco, 7 June 2017]

If the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) didn't have enough internal structural problems to deal with along comes the UK-based multinational Serco Group.

A group implicated in: human rights abuses in prisons and immigration detention centres it has managed; poor to unsafe health service delivery including at Fiona Stanley Hospital in Perth, overcharging for services rendered under government contracts, fraudulent record keeping and manipulating results when there was a failure to reach targets; mishandling of radioactive waste and labour rights abuses.

The Guardian, 23 Apri 2018:

Disability rights groups, Labor and the Greens have slammed a decision to hire the multinational outsourcing giant Serco in a key role administering the national disability insurance scheme.

The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) announced on Friday afternoon that Serco, a company with a chequered corporate history, would help run its contact centres under a two-year contract.

The decision would put the company at the frontline of the NDIS, interacting frequently with people with disability and service providers, many of whom are still grappling with a vast, complex and sometimes confusing scheme.

 “Sourcing our contact centre services from Serco will give ongoing flexibility, responsiveness and value for money,” the NDIA said in a statement.

But the decision has outraged disability rights campaigners, who say Serco’s poor history abroad and its lack of experience in disability should have precluded it from any role delivering the landmark scheme. 

People with Disability Australia co-chief executive, Matthew Bowden, said he was “gravely concerned” that Serco would, like other third-party providers, fail to uphold the values, objectives and principles underpinning the NDIS.

“We have no details on what expertise Serco have in providing communication services for people with disability, or why the NDIA has decided to outsource such a vital part of its services,” Bowden said.

“The NDIA needs to hire more staff and make their communication avenues with people with disability more transparent. Instead, they are offloading their responsibilities, and requirements, to deliver services to people with disability.”

Paralympian Kurt Fearnley was among those expressing concern at the decision, saying Serco would be “racking their brains on how they can bring lived experience of disabilities into their workplace”.

“The NDIS will be worthless if people with disabilities aren’t at its core!” he tweeted.

Personally, I find a UK gaoler/overseer supplying convict labour for outdoor work in Australia has an uncomfortable historical resonance even when dressed up as ‘work experience’

 

Clarence Correctional Centre is a 1,700 bed maximum- and minimum-security correctional centre for male and female offenders, which includes 400 minimum security beds. The centre is located at Lavidia 12km south east of Grafton in the Clarence Valley.

This prison opened in July 2020 is managed on a twenty-year contract by Serco Asia Pacific on behalf of the NSW Government. This contract was initially worth UK £1.5 billion to the Serco Group.

The Serco Group Plc is a UK-based, publicly listed, multinational corporation which in the first half of 2023 had revenue of UK £2.4 billion and is expected to end the year with revenue of at least UK £4.8 billion (AUS $9.4 billion).

Apparently Serco appears to be anticipating that Clarence Valley Council will assist it in meeting this revenue target – presumably by way of a program grant from government directly to Serco.

Personally, I find a UK gaoler/overseer supplying convict labour for outdoor work in Australia has an uncomfortable historical resonance even when dressed up as ‘work experience’.

It should be noted that Serco has a long history of contract breaches when it comes to correctional and immigration detention facilities, for overcharging government for its services, poor security and human rights abuse.

The Daily Telegraph, 15 August 2023:

The United Services Union states Clarence Valley Council wants to use prison inmates for repair and maintenance work in parks and reserves such as Market Square in Grafton.

But the council has hit back in a statement accusing the union of embarking on a campaign “built on misinformation and scaremongering”.

Northern regional organiser John Hickson said the main issue which upset the union was the lack of communication from the council.

“The way we found out was a phone call from our delegate that two supervisors had been summoned to a meeting about areas where prisoners could work around Grafton,” he said.

“We were upset because we weren’t informed or consulted about it … we even sent a letter to the council asking them to respond to the issue, which they’ve failed to do.

“What’s happening is so wrong because it should be council work for council employees — not for prisoners.”

In response, Mr Hickson started a campaign on Tuesday – including flyers and a placard on a bus – to make Grafton aware of the council’s proposal.

“The community response so far has been absolute shock and outrage — they knew nothing about it too,” he said….

The council stated key outdoor staff have been asked to provide feedback on the pilot program, which, if it goes ahead, would provide work experience to inmates.

“The ideas floated at a meeting with Serco executives early in August include repair and maintenance of park and recreational spaces,” the council stated.

“The pilot program is at the inception end of development and no details have been finalised or agreed.

“Council management is disappointed in the response by the United Services Union, which is built on misinformation and scaremongering.”

The statement declared the program “is not intended to replace council staff”.

“(Council is even) preparing to increase its Open Space workforce by up to six employees to accommodate increased workloads due to recent upgrades and the influx of tourists to the area,” it read.

Later in the afternoon, council issued another statement, which welcomed a decision to discontinue a matter that was being heard in the Industrial Relations Commission today.

“(The ruling gives) council clear direction to progress discussions with staff and the union about partnering with Serco to establish a day release work program, noting any activities should not be those that are contained within current staff work program,” the statement read.

Clarence Valley Council has been contacted for further comment.

Serco-managed Clarence Correctional Centre to open on 1 July 2020

Image: Tweed Daily News

The est. $700 million purpose-built 1,700 bed Clarence Correctional Centre will open in thirteen days time and will hold both men and women.

This NSW prison at Lavadia in the Clarence Valley will be managed by the U.K. based multinational Serco Group.

Serco's contract has an estimated total value to the corporation over a 20-year term of approximately AUD$2.6 billion.

North Coast Voices readers may recall that the Serco Group has on numerous occasions been the subject of allegations concerning corruption, mismanagement, privacy violations and human rights abuses at its facilities and by its staff.

There will likely be more than a few fingers being crossed in the Clarence Valley that Serco through its subsidiary Serco Australia Pty Limited will not behave improperly or unlawfully when prisoners begin to fill what is being touted as the newest and largest correctional facility in Australia.

Morrison Government is making sure that Centrelink clients' worst nightmares are coming true

The Sydney Morning Herald, 20 September 2018:

Labour hire workers will soon be used in face-to-face roles in Centrelink offices across the country, as part of a six-month trial.

Thirty labour hire workers will be used in some Centrelink offices in Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia in what is believed to be self-managed support advisor roles from next month. This person generally greets people as they enter Centrelink offices and often directs them to using computers and phones in the offices.

The move is another step in increasing use of labour hire at the agency, following on from the announcement that 1500 call centre roles would be outsourced to Serco, Stellar Asia Pacific, Concentrix Services and DataCom Connect.

It had also previously been announced that 1000 staff from labour hire firms would be deployed at Centrelink offices around the country, and a pilot program with Serco with 250 call centre staff means 2750 contractors have been hired since last year to work at the agency. It's believed the trial is part of existing labour hire contracts Human Services has with private companies.

A Department of Human Services spokeswoman said the 30 staff members were additional staff.

"There are no job losses associated with the move," the spokeswoman said.

The main public sector union is worried that members of the public will be dealing with staff members who aren't employed by the government.

"The CPSU is seriously concerned that labour hire workers will now be the first port of call for customers walking into a Centrelink office, instead of permanent members of staff. We want Australians to be served by experienced and properly trained staff members," Community and Public Sector Union deputy secretary Melissa Donnelly said.

"The job might sound easy but dealing with clients who may be agitated or distressed as they walk into an office can be very difficult, and could pose a risk to the safety of the workers."

It's not yet clear how workloads will be managed in a role that was previously shared among Centrelink staff throughout a shift.

“Experienced Centrelink staff are able to manage that, but it’s going to be much harder for labour hire workers who don’t have the same experience or background. 

This is bad news for those workers and bad news for members of the community who are trying to access services," Ms Donnelly said.

NOTE:

* Private prison operator Serco has a disreptuable history in Australia and overseas.
See: https://www.sydneycriminallawyers.com.au/blog/serco-run-facilities-fraud-failures-and-fatal-errors/ & https://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/immigration/detention-centre-staff-condemned-by-coroner-over-deaths-of-villawood-detainees/news-story/e7716137afb293eda1294cca07f30ebe & https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/serco-to-pay-back-69m-over-fraudulent-tagging-contracts-9015214.html &
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-02-12/melbourne-immigration-guard-sacked-over-sexual-harassment-claims/7163786

Yet other digital privacy betrayals

The global situation......

The Guardian, 14 November 2018:

Google has been accused of breaking promises to patients, after the company announced it would be moving a healthcare-focused subsidiary, DeepMind Health, into the main arm of the organisation.

The restructure, critics argue, breaks a pledge DeepMind made when it started working with the NHS that “data will never be connected to Google accounts or services”. The change has also resulted in the dismantling of an independent review board, created to oversee the company’s work with the healthcare sector, with Google arguing that the board was too focused on Britain to provide effective oversight for a newly global body.

Google says the restructure is necessary to allow DeepMind’s flagship health app, Streams, to scale up globally. The app, which was created to help doctors and nurses monitor patients for AKI, a severe form of kidney injury, has since grown to offer a full digital dashboard for patient records.

“Our vision is for Streams to now become an AI-powered assistant for nurses and doctors everywhere – combining the best algorithms with intuitive design, all backed up by rigorous evidence,” DeepMind said, announcing the transfer. “The team working within Google, alongside brilliant colleagues from across the organisation, will help make this vision a reality.”

DeepMind Health was previously part of the AI-focused research group DeepMind, which is officially a sibling to Google, with both divisions being owned by the organisation’s holding company Alphabet.

But the transfer and vision for Streams looks hard to reconcile with DeepMind’s previous comments about the app. In July 2016, following criticism that the company’s data-sharing agreement with the NHS was overly broad, co-founder Mustafa Suleyman wrote: “We’ve been clear from the outset that at no stage will patient data ever be linked or associated with Google accounts, products or services.”

Now that Streams is a Google product itself, that promise appears to have been broken, says privacy researcher Julia Powles: “Making this about semantics is a sleight of hand. DeepMind said it would never connect Streams with Google. The whole Streams app is now a Google product. That is an atrocious breach of trust, for an already beleaguered product.”......

Here in Australia......

Canberra Times, 15 November 2018, p.8:

The chairman of the agency responsible for the bungled My Health Record rollout has been privately advising a global healthcare outsourcing company. Fairfax Media discovered the relationship between the UK-based company Serco and the Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) chairman Jim Birch after obtaining a number of internal documents.

The revelation comes as Health Minister Greg Hunt was forced to extend the My Health Record opt- out period after a compromise deal with the Senate crossbench and a last-minute meltdown of the website left thousands of Australians struggling to meet the original deadline. 

Since April 2016, Mr Birch has been ADHA chairman with oversight of My HealthRecord, the online summary of key health information of millions of Australians. Documents from the ADHA, released under freedom of information laws, show Mr Birch registered his work for Serco in November 2017, but the relationship was never publicly declared.

After Fairfax Media submitted questions last week on whether the relationship posed a conflict of interest, Mr Birch quit the advisory role.

Serco has won a number of multibillion-dollar government contracts to privately run - and in some cases deliver healthcare in - some of Australia's prisons, hospitals and detention centres.

The ability of Serco to navigate the controversial area of digital health records would be invaluable to any future expansion plans.

A spokeswoman for federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said all board members had declared their interests.

"Board members do not have access to system operations, and board members cannot be present while a matter is being considered at a board meeting in which the member has an interest," she said.

Lisa Parker, a public health ethics expert at University of Sydney, said the public had been asked to trust the agency is acting in its best interests. She said they should make public any information relevant to that trust…..

The register also shows Mr Birch knows the chief executive of start-up Personify Care, Ken Saman, and has been giving him advice since August last year. The software company recently released "Personify Connect", a product that provides hospitals with "seamless integration" of its original patient monitoring platform with My Health Record.

Despite being scheduled to speak at a "Personify Care breakfast seminar" later this year, Mr Birch has never publicly declared this interest. Mr Birch is also chairman of another start-up called Clevertar that allows businesses to create "virtual agents" and offer "personalised healthcare support, delivered at scale". This relationship is on the public record. 

Public sector ethics expert Richard Mulgan, from Australian National University, said the chairman should submit to a higher standard than ordinary board members and distance himself from anything suggesting a conflict of interest.

He said perception was just as important as reality and the public, not the people involved, was the best judge of whether there was a problem.

"The personal interests register must be published," he said.

"The fact they haven't can only lead to the perception there are conflicts of which they are ashamed."

Mr Birch, Personify Care and Clevertar did not respond to Fairfax Media's questions.

A Serco spokesman confirmed the company met with Mr Birch "occasionally ... over the past 12 months regarding business management", but did not answer whether it paid him.......

The Courier Mail, 15 November 2018, p.4:

Your dietitian, dentist, podiatrist, occupational therapist or optometrist will be able to see if have a sexually transmitted disease or an addiction unless you set access controls to My Health ­Record.

Major new privacy concerns emerged after the Federal Government was yesterday forced into an embarrassing call to delay the rollout.

People trying to access the controversial My Health Record hotline and computer portal experienced major delays during a rush to opt out before the system was rolled out tomorrow.

Health Minister Greg Hunt was forced to delay the opt out period until January 31 after pressure from health groups and crossbench senators.

The Australian Medical Ass­ociation was the only major health group not calling for a delay.

The vast majority of groups were concerned the record would come into ­effect before key privacy and secu­rity upgrades had been passed by ­Parliament. AMA president Dr Tony Bartone denied its position was related to his need to keep the Health Minister onside while he negotiated key reforms to general practice care.