Imagine the distress you'd feel if you were told, out of the blue, that you owed the federal government thousands, or even tens of thousands, of dollars.

That's the anguish the former coalition government inflicted on 400,000 Australians when it tried to illegally claw back welfare payments.   

Public hearings in the Royal Commission investigating who's to blame for the deeply flawed Robodebt scheme end this week. 

Today, ABC reporter Rachael Mealey walks us through the key evidence.  

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Rachel Mealey, ABC national affairs reporter