[Thread] If you haven’t heard about the #indue #cashlessdebitcard used for some #centrelink payments. Ohh boy. Strap yourself in, you’re in for a ride. The Liberal government have been “trailing” the card at 6 sites across Australia since 2016. #auspol #AuspolSoCorrupt
The sites are Ceduna, Kununurra, Wyndham, Goldfields, Bundaberg and Hervey Bay regions.
The idea is to ‘quarantine’ 80% of a persons payment onto the indue card. This is meant to stop a person from using their payment to buy alcohol, illicit drugs, make cash withdrawals or gamble. This is to “tackle” the scourges affecting communities.
The proposal for such a card was made by mining billionaire, Andrew Forrest in 2014 as part of a review of Aboriginal employment and training programs under the Abbott govt. He recommended all unemployed persons, carers and single parents be placed on the card.
As one could imagine, the sites that are ‘trailing’ card are in areas will large First Australian communities. Hence little to no media attention to the failings of the card, its overt racist deployment & it’s targeting of the most vulnerable.
Since 2016 Indue has been paid between $4k - $10k per card issued to recipients of Newstart, Parenting payment and Youth allowance. For reference, Newstart pays about $14k a year. The taxpayer is made to pay up to another $10k for the card and “services” per year.
Services such as, monitoring and reporting on spending habits, replacement of lost cards, authorising payment limit increases, customer service etc. Basic roles that may have once been public service jobs.
Recently, I had the disheartening experience to watch a video where a user of the indue card couldn’t pay her rent. Why? Because indue refused the amount charged because it was to much for a single transaction. Isn’t this the exact purpose behind the card? People paying rent.
Surely you can opt out, I hear you say. Yes and no is the answer. Only after you go through a rigorous and torturous process, you *might* be able to be exempted or flat out denied. And who decides if you get off the card? Indue pty Ltd does! No conflict of interest there.
As of August 2019, it was estimated that Indue pty Ltd has been paid $21.9 million dollars for their services by the Morrison government. If this program goes national, we are talking tens of BILLIONS a year not being used in extra welfare payments, schools, hospitals etc.
Oh but the shitfuckery doesn’t stop there. Oh no. Indue pty Ltd has been a long term, proud political donor to none other than the Liberal party. Often donating directly to MPs and Senators election funds.
If this govt. thinks that they can shove this mate rates, corporate payoff, welfare stealing card on to those ‘mainstream’ Australia doesn’t care about — what’s to stop them from forcing DSP recipients on to it? What about your nan and her age pension? Or you in the future?
We have to kill this evil card, reclaim the money been stolen from the public, raise the rate on Newstart and invest the money into solutions of the underlying issues of alcoholism, drug taking and problem gambling. All we are doing at the moment is punishing people. Not helping.
