#nzpol #jobcuts #Neoliberalism #austerity #homelessness #poverty #NZGovtFail

The National Socialist Network held an antisemitic rally outside New South Wales Parliament today - astoundingly, it's emerged this afternoon that they did this with approval from NSW Police. www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw...

The gummint mandates 4.5% of the workforce have to be unemployed to benefit the economy then force those people to live below the poverty line. That isn’t support. That’s cruelty for the sake of it.

Barangaroo exemplar of worse practice, now with smidge of affordable housing (just 2.3%) given ‘poor door’ entry @jennyleong.bsky.social spot on; “outsourced the responsibility of housing delivery” to developers, giving them “more control over affordable housing”. www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

Ty @jennaprice.bsky.social for this article (🔗 below), particularly for sharing a quote that exposes the minister actively lying about what her proposal does. It will not at all work like a payment suspension for someone on remand – it is a payment cancellation and there is no access to ART review.

Many of the groups calling on @tanyaplibersekmp.bsky.social to abandon her plan to involve police & ministers in cancelling Centrelink payments for someone accused of a serious offence work directly with people affected by family violence. To suggest they don’t take it seriously is vile. Apologise.

broke: food vouchers woke: liveable welfare payments for all who need them including those in low paid jobs bespoke: pay your fucking employees enough for them to live comfortably

The government's last-minute addition to its social security bill, granting the Minister power to suspend or cancel welfare payments before a person is convicted of a crime, will see children going hungry, Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe says.

Christopher Rudge’s article on the Federal Court’s decision provides useful background and analysis theconversation.com/the-ghost-of...

Labor's income apportionment bill may turn out to be completely dead in the water, because it's not just a shady power grab. It's supposed to be about a dodgy patch up of millions of unlawfully calculated debts. Debt calculations that will now be considered by the high court.

what is wrong with the social services minister and why is she in charge of policies that are supposed to be about supporting and caring for people

Huge result for now. Rapid response starting last Thursday to establish a united front of community and civil society organisations. Gonna be much tougher for them to get this through from here 👍

So, @tanyaplibersekmp.bsky.social lost the public argument on this wretched amendment, allowing police to cancel Centrelink payments for ppl who have not been found guilty So she went on Sky News to defame legal, disability, & community advocates as well as Senator Thorpe revolting stuff

The minister is continuing to weaponise the harm done to people subjected to violence, even when groups representing folks affected by it are pleading with her to stop what she is doing. The government is taking advantage of the community's natural emotional reactions to acts of violence.

This is doing my head in. Who is this for? Why are Labor even persuing it? How many people do they expect to impacted by this change that makes it neccessary or important? Un-fckn-fathomable.

Disability groups have released a statement: "We are deeply concerned that communities traditionally over-policed & disadvantaged, including First Nations people with disability, would be at heightened risk" The whole statement is well worth reading. Ty @amyremeikis.bsky.social for reporting.

Egregious defamation of social services/disability/community legal sectors, advocates & crossbench on Sky News by Social Sevices Minister @tanyaplibersekmp.bsky.social, accusing us ALL of supporting rape, murder & child abuse. Labor's amendments supported by: - Police Federation of Aus - Coalition

\Content warning\ @tanyaplibersekmp.bsky.social has been on Sky News to finally respond to the below groups who have asked her to hear our concerns about the separation of powers, due process and unintended consequences. She has dismissed these concerns in the vilest way possible.

The CPSU have also done bugger-all work on this for years other than to say the CES should come back. Get serious and involve yourselves please.

As well as the Law Council of Australia, more disability peak bodies have come out to oppose the sudden introduction of new powers for police & ministers to cancel social security for people accused of a serious offence.

It seems like if enough people tell this govt 'you're harming ppl & it's illegal' they eventually say, 'oh no...' and set about making it legal

Rick Morton will tell you that there are 57 recommendations

The income apportionment bill that will strip away due process rights from welfare recipients accused of serious crime, powers that have had no scrutiny and are opposed by the Law Council of Australia among many others, is in the senate now. Watch proceedings here: www.youtube.com/live/ul_HOQG...

In the senate, @pennyallmanpayne.com now speaking on Robodebt, with @kathmadgwick.bsky.social and @chexabonus.bsky.social in parliament today. Senator Allman-Payne is pointing out the government's failure to take the royal commission seriously, including through "mutual" obligations penalties.

The arrogance, punching down, and unaccountability of the Albanese govt on social security policy is astounding. Hard to distinguish from the Morrison regime. But what they share is accountability only to powerful lobby groups - like the profiteers who run [so-called] employment services. #auspol

The Law Council of Australia has called on the government to split the unrelated amendment from the income apportionment bill that grants police and ministers power to stop social security payments for people accused of a serious offence. The government cannot claim ignorance of what this means.

Now @justiceandequity.bsky.social has added its name to the list of groups opposing this draconian and underhanded move. These are the groups @tanyaplibersekmp.bsky.social has dismissed. She refuses to address concerns about separation of powers, due process and unintended consequences.

Telling that the government doesn't seem anywhere near as concerned about the 'optics' of their approach to Robodebt, the NACC, the fossil fuel industry, the destruction of Indigenous (and global) heritage .... #auspol

Meanwhile, it seems the government wants to do away with the foundation of their legal system for the sake of optics and because News Corp said so. Ty @amyremeikis.bsky.social for reporting. Follow The Point live blog here for updates as they come: live.thepoint.com.au

“In the wake of robodebt @albomp.bsky.social promised accountability, compassion & reform... If Labor wants to restore trust, it must scrap this amendment. Welfare policy should be grounded in fairness... it should never, ever be used as a proxy for criminal justice.” @zoewundenberg.bsky.social

Even the people you assume will take any opportunity to punch down on welfare recipients disagree with what the government is doing.

Opinion piece on the proposed measure to cease Centrelink payments to the subjects of outstanding arrest warrant for serious violent and sexual offences. The article mistakenly suggests the ASIO/security notice power is new but it was introduced in 2014 www.canberratimes.com.au/story/910387...

AM talkback listeners having more empathy and concern that the Australian Labor Party is now a thing

6PR talkback radio listeners are having none of it – they say allowing police & ministers to cut Centrelink payments before conviction is "hypocritical", "the government can't arbitrarily impose punishments on people" and that "this is the thin end of the wedge". Full interview:

'"The whole notion of taking income support off anyone in the community simply because they are accused of something is a fundamental breach of natural justice — it is wrong." But police have welcomed the amendments, and said it would be a rarely used but powerful tool.'

it's also very difficult to find them if they don't have any money to spend, creating a trail of bank transactions, but ok

The cops have provided an embarrassing response to the ABC. They & @tanyaplibersekmp.bsky.social are utterly failing to engage with the concerns about the clear risk of unintended consequences raised by welfare, family violence survivors, disability, First Nations & legal advocates.

Many unemployed people compelled to attend these agencies are disabled, or have parent/carer commitments, and private employers exclude both those groups . Create jobs, not punitive job agencies.

Thank you Dechlan Brennan @nit-bot.bsky.social – most thorough explantion of this to date. "It's a clear breach of the presumption of innocence and the separation of powers. No Minister should have power to punish someone just suspected of an offence without due process." @senatorthorpe.bsky.social

Gov has proposed further amendments - allow for the small debt waiver (under $250) to apply to future undetermined debts. I.e. so they can be waived before being formally raised. Bill as introduced waived small undetermined debts currently in the Centrelink system, but it did not apply prospectively

The bill will be up in the senate soon. You can watch proceedings here: www.youtube.com/live/axWXqZd...

Unfortunately for @tanyaplibersekmp.bsky.social scattering some words like 'serious' and 'should not' and 'not appropriate' is not policy or law, nor an argument to do anything.

📢 Thousands of Indigenous households across northern Australia live with prepaid power, where disconnection can happen at any moment. Now a new report has warned that without stronger protections, the system could turn deadly in extreme heat. SBS’s Christopher Tan travelled to the Kimberley to see…

Thank you @andrewwilkiemp.bsky.social and @senatorthorpe.bsky.social. This is the most basic principle of what they call the "justice" system, and they want to strip it away with no scrutiny.

I mean, what's the chances of cops ever abusing a power like th.. Oh, I see

Bill listed on the draft program ('the red') for second reading debate in the Senate today

Follow The Point live blog with @amyremeikis.bsky.social to get any updates on the government’s effort to cancel Centrelink payments for people accused of a serious offence. This afternoon @senatorthorpe.bsky.social and @davidpocock.bsky.social will make moves in the senate to prevent the change.

Or as Sarina Russo says, “Check out my Louis Vuitton!”

National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services (NATSILS) Chair Karly Warner called the proposal “controversial” and said it is “an unprecedented attack on fairness and due process which will shake public confidence in our legal system.” The separation of powers is not optional.