The SOCIAL SECURITY (ADMINISTRATION) AMENDMENT (REPEAL OF CASHLESS DEBIT CARD AND OTHER MEASURES) BILL 2022 came before the Australian Parliament on the second sitting day of the 47th Parliament at 11:53am.
This bill closes the cashless debit card program no later than 19 September 2022 and repeals Part 3D of the Social Security (Administration) Act 1999 (Administration Act) on the day on which Part 2 of Schedule 1 to the Social Security (Administration) Amendment (Repeal of Cashless Debit Card and Other Measures) Act 2022 commences, ie no later than six months after the bill receives Royal Assent.
The bill was introduced by the Minister for Social Services, Amanda Rishworth MP.
The Minister read into the Hansard record in part, the following:
The bill will:
• Remove the ability for any new entrants to be put on the card;
• Enable the more than 17,000 existing cashless debit card participants to be progressively transitioned off the card as soon as the bill receives royal assent, which we aim to have occur in the next sitting period, in September, allowing for participants to regain the financial freedom they've been asking for;
• Enable the Family Responsibilities Commission to continue to support their community members by placing them onto income management where the need exists;
• Allows for me to determine, following further consultation with First Nations people and my colleagues, how the Northern Territory participants on the CDC will transition, and the income management arrangements that will exist; and
• Finally, it will allow for the repeal of the cashless debit card on a day to be fixed by proclamation or a maximum of six months after royal assent—allowing for the necessary time to support a staged transition off the card. It will also make consequential amendments to a number of other acts and effectively removes CDC from all social services legislation.
Our absolute priority is to ensure participants are supported through their transition off the card in a safe and structured way.
This will be done through extensive communication and an outreach strategy so that participants are well informed about the changes and what it means for them.
Information and education sessions will be held in each cashless debit card site over the transition period with culturally appropriate information and support.
Services Australia will conduct individually targeted transitional support interviews for those who need it, or want this additional assistance, to make sure exiting participants are well informed on the options available to them.
Not everyone will need this level of assistance—but this approach will ensure no-one is left behind due to being forced onto this card by the former government…..
The bill was read a second time on 27 July, with debate adjourned [Luke Howarth, LNP Qld MP] and the resumption of the debate made an order of the day for the next sitting.
I suspect that the forthcoming debate may be rather politically uncivil on the part of Coalition Opposition MPs. Given the brief prelude by way of interjection by backbench LNP MP for Longman Terry Young and Shadow Minister for Education & Liberal MP for Aston Alan Tudge - a cashless debit card enthusiast who as then Minister for Human Services made a joint announcement in March 2017 extending the debit card trial sites, with then Minister for Social Services Christian Porter.
