The national redress scheme will receive a funding boost to address delays that have plagued the system since it started a year ago.
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Marking the first anniversary of the national apology to victims of institutional child sexual abuse, Social Services Minister Anne Ruston announced the scheme would receive another $11.7 million to deal with delays.
"The investment will reduce the number of different people a survivor may be required to deal with while their application is processed and allow us to hire more independent decision makers to finalise applications as quickly as possible," Senator Ruston said.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison told Parliament on Tuesday the scheme needed to do better.
"The rate of response is not good enough. And it must improve," Mr Morrison said.
"Applications haven't been processed as fast as I want them to be.
"I want better outcomes."
More than 600 people have so far been paid under the scheme, the Prime Minister said, but 5040 applications have been received.
Tuesday's announcement comes after a Canberra Times report revealed under-staffing and a bureaucratic bottleneck were causing massive delays to people receiving payments.
At the time, Senator Ruston denied departmental staff were acting as gate-keepers between assessors and independent decision makers, instead saying Human Services staff were taking a "quality assurance step" before applications were considered by independent decision makers.
Labor's spokeswoman for families and social services, Linda Burney, said three quarters of applicants were still waiting due to administrative delay and the average wait time was eight months.
"While additional investment is a step in the right direction, survivors are still waiting too long," Ms Burney said.
"Some are elderly. Some are unwell. Some are passing away before seeing justice."
Mr Morrison also called for institutions that have not yet joined the scheme to do the honourable thing and join.
"There are other institutions who have chosen not to join. Perhaps captured by lawyers, legal advice, perhaps deaf to the cause of justice," he said.
"All they're doing in not joining this is doubling down on the crimes and doubling down on the hurt."
Sally Whyte
I report on a range of issues in federal politics and the public service, with a real passion for how decisions made in Canberra affect the lives of Australians.
I report on a range of issues in federal politics and the public service, with a real passion for how decisions made in Canberra affect the lives of Australians.
