2016-10-04
Pushing unemployed youth onto a variation of the cashless welfare card demonstrates long held fears by the community that the cashless welfare card trials would result in an expanded rollout, Australian Greens Senator Rachel Siewert said today.
“Surprise, surprise. Before the cashless welfare card trials in regional communities have concluded, the Government is spruiking a similar card for other vulnerable cohorts of the community.
“It is clear the Government is not genuinely interested in proper evidence. The first rollout is a stepping stone to a broader rollout of a card that is built on ideology.
“The Minister promised that the shakeup of our social services net would be evidence based and supposedly revolutionary – yet we are seeing much of the same – paternalism that is set to fail.
"One of the learnings from the NT Intervention is that the Basic Card in many cases did not improve financial decision making as budgeting decisions are taken out of peoples' hands, this could particularly happen with young people just starting out.
“I urge the Government to abandon any consideration of this proposal”.