You'll be amazed at what you can buy with a cashless welfare card

paying for prostitute

Welfare recipients can use their cashless welfare cards to pay for prostitutes and buy pornography, but cannot buy alcohol.

During senate estimates this week, a Department of Social Services official was asked by Labor MP Malarndirri McCarthy if the card could be used to purchase 'legal sex services'.

The spokesperson answered that the cashless cards were designed to be 'non-interventionist'.

'It has been designed to be as non-interventionist as possible to allow participants to have flexibility and control over their lives and finances while still achieving its core objectives of reducing social problems,' the spokesperson for Social Services Minister Anne Ruston said.

The cards have been introduced to make people spend welfare money on essential items.

Alcohol, gambling, gift cards and cash withdrawals are not deemed essential and is limited or prohibited using the cashless welfare card.

Do you think prostitutes should be considered ‘essential’?

10 comments

Is that for both male and female prostitutes and what about sex toys? Do they get those on the cashless welfare card too?

I see the point you're trying to make Reag. I don't think men or women of the night should be considered "essential" - however, a glass of red should be good for anyone's health. That's my opinion and I'm sticking to it.

Guys, they all go together, wine, women and song. 

I heard you could buy vanilla visa cards with them too. 

Prositution is legal so why not be able to pay for that service using a cashless welfare card. Alcohol is also legal but an excess is dangerous.

The whole concept of the cashless welfare card is flawed. If it was that effective why not issue one to each retired politician for them to access their pension. Why should the taxpayers be paying for a retired pollie's drinking habits?

Can't understand what you are trying to say in your second paragraph. Please explain.

I agree with you, Tanker, the retired pollies need to test if first on their pensions.  It would be interesting to know what percentage of welfare recipients are not part of the social problems but are tarred with the booze and drugs brush.  There is also a trickle down effect as well when people who are jobless through no fault of their own are looked down on when they have to hand that card over to pay for their groceries.

Prositution is legal so why not be able to pay for that service using a cashless welfare card. Alcohol is also legal but an excess is dangerous.

The whole concept of the cashless welfare card is flawed. If it was that effective why not issue one to each retired politician for them to access their pension. Why should the taxpayers be paying for a retired pollie's drinking habits?

 

Given that a welfare card was to limit expenditure on drugs, alcohol and gambling only in the interest of meeting household expenses (don't forget they still retain 20% of the payment in cash) then you would expect the card to work like any other credit/debit card which would make sex services permissible. After all, a woman won her case against the NDIS who refused to pay for sexual services so why not the welfare card. The 'shock' in the click bait title is nothing  more than a judgement of the service provider not the purchaser. 

 

 

KSS, if you consider that 20% is less than $6 a day, for most people on this card, then I don't think it is fair at all.  If you have kids and need to pay for excursions etc how are you meant to do that.

There have been cases of people being thrown out of their rentals because their rent hasn't been paid on time by Indue.
There have also been cases of people abused because they are forced to use this card when they are NOT drinkers/ druggies.There is a limit off which shops you can go to buy groceries - and you get overcharged on them as well.

How is that helping people get on top of things?

I can understand them trying to make sure that these peoples bills are paid BUT why should people who are NOT in debt be forced onto this card?  

If you consider that Indue is paid $12000 PER card why hasn't the government used this money to increase the unemployment /pension benefits - after all they already have a FREE service [centrepay] to ensure that peoples bills where paid on time.

This is just making some of their rich pals richer at OUR expense! 

Good point KSS,This anti welfare Govt can afford $12000 per card for their mates Indue,while as you said

people who are responsible on welfare,which would be a very high % can pay many of their bills through

Centrelink,eg power,gas even in some cases rent,Public Housing in QLD has this payment option available

and i'm sure other states would also,the cashless welfare card has a place for people who abuse welfare

why should the majority of people on welfare be penalised for nothing,just another way for this greedy

sneaky Govt to win votes who support their narrow minded view of welfare.

Good point KSS,This anti welfare Govt can afford $12000 per card for their mates Indue,while as you said

people who are responsible on welfare,which would be a very high % can pay many of their bills through

Centrelink,eg power,gas even in some cases rent,Public Housing in QLD has this payment option available

and i'm sure other states would also,the cashless welfare card has a place for people who abuse welfare

why should the majority of people on welfare be penalised for nothing,just another way for this greedy

sneaky Govt to win votes who support their narrow minded view of welfare.

The government is right in this. I reckon it completely fair to veto expenditure of taxpayer provided money on alcohol and cigarettes and perhaps some other drugs which I don't know are available. These things are said to assure higher healthcare expense even if the health of recipients is not otherwise our interest. Otherwise, as it intends, Government should be as far out of peoples lives as it can remain.

We are an extremely generous society and if people can spend money on these things the amount given could be docked to suit. (Perhaps that is even an argument for allowing expenditure on drink and alcohol :-) ) Sexual services are not nearly the same. It is possible to argue that they are as essential to health as eating or drinking water in some people's lives.

It is a long step away and currently fabulous but ultimately, cards or other electronic means could be a method of ensuring public provided funds are spent on Australian products and even further on bulk comparatively healthy foods, clothing etc. We are going to need to find ways to get social security expenditure down and most, certainly not all, living on the public purse have the time and capacity to learn to cook, to cook, to make the bulk of their own clothes where suitable attire cannot be found locally at a satisfactory price and to plant some vegetables. It is so easy, I know since despite extremely long hours as a student, parent, professional and a business owner I have done each of these things. As a start, it takes little extra funds-wise to start purchasing in bulk, it is satisfying, much cheaper, can be healthier and can reduce waste.

A start for government would be to purchase in extreme bulk so that it is able to make available bulk flour, oil and the like at an unbeatable rate for those with cards. This could even be used as a blueprint for a mechanism to see people opt-in to an electronic system.

Don't know what your really trying to explain Jaid,your saying the Govt should remain as far out of peoples

lives as possible,well according to your possibles there doesn't seem to be too many.Alcohol and cigaretts

are legal not every person on welfare drinks and smokes,public money is always a debate,if your a pollie or

work for the Govt do you think these people should be on a cashless card too,i'm sure you don't.

Don't know what your really trying to explain Jaid,your saying the Govt should remain as far out of peoples

lives as possible,well according to your possibles there doesn't seem to be too many.Alcohol and cigaretts

are legal not every person on welfare drinks and smokes,public money is always a debate,if your a pollie or

work for the Govt do you think these people should be on a cashless card too,i'm sure you don't.

So a person on welfare has to justify what they spend their money on, but it is accepted that a politician spending our money does not have to account for how their allowances are spent?

I don't mind controls and transperancy on  how tax payers money is spent, just as long as it is across the board.

If we want to querry government expenditure, do it for all.

I don't care how wellfare money is spent, my view is, once it is handed out, it belongs to the recipient.  Just because you need welfare it does not mean you no longer have the right to determine how to run your own life.

What comes next, a cashlesss card for anyone earning under a certain wage?   

The Nanny State fans must be rubbing their hands together in anticipation.

Agree with you exPS 

... Politicians should also be given cashless welfare cards so their spending is transparrent.

It should only be used on individuals who can't manage their money and are constantly trying to get urgent payments to tide them over each week. People who are on welfare and able to control their spending habits, who gives a shit how their money is spent.

 

 

Cashless cards are a waste of time and can be used for anything including buying drugs booze or smokes

example person #1 is going to buy food, Person #2  pays for food with cashless card, person #1 then gives Person #2 Cash, person #2 now has cash to buy drugs booze smokes, what ever. that makes the cashless card usless, inconvenient but usless

 

 

10 comments



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