Kununurra sees more hungry children and threats of violence since Cashless Debit Card was scrapped

An East Kimberley town has experienced double the number of children going to school hungry, fewer people spending their money at the supermarket and more people heading to the bottle shop since the cashless debit card was made voluntary. One former Kununurra youth worker said women had reported they were threatened with violence by family members if they didn’t opt out of the welfare scheme, which quarantines up to 80 per cent of payments. As Prime Minister Anthony Albanese headed to Port Hedland for a special Cabinet meeting last Tuesday, leaders and community members from Kununurra described the negative impact the scrapping of the cashless debit card has had on their town since the Federal Government made it voluntary in October last year. Kununurra and Wyndham welfare recipients have opted out of the CDC program in droves, with 95 per cent (1120) ditching the card in the past four-and-a-half months. Shire of Wyndham-East Kimberley chief executive Vernon Lawrence said he received regular feedback from community members and leaders about what impact they were seeing since the income-management scheme was abandoned. “I have been informed by members of the community that the estimated number of children going to school hungry has doubled and that those with credits at the tuckshop have requested refunds,” he said. The Kimberley Echo has also been told that there has been a 60 per cent increase in students using the breakfast club and emergency lunches at school. The Department of Education said it could not confirm the increase in demand for breakfast at the school because the numbers fluctuated each day. A former youth worker, who wished not to be named, said women had been forced off the CDC, known as the Indue card or white card, by their relatives. “The women said they liked the Indue Card because they always had money to buy food for their kids,” she said. “They say it’s not a choice (to opt-out) because if we don’t come off them we will get beaten until we do come off it. It’s not an option they want their money,” she said. Taxi drivers have reported a drop in fares of around 30 per cent as people no longer order a ride to get groceries from the supermarket. Faiz Baro, a taxi driver in Kununurra since 2016, said he used to take 30 to 40 customers to the supermarket daily. “These days it is less than 50 per cent of that,” he said. “To be honest most of the time they are going to the bottle shop instead because they have cash handy,” he said. Wunan Foundation Chairman Ian Trust, who was heavily involved in bringing the trial of the CDC to Kununurra said he never believed the card was the “single solution to solving our problems.” “But I believe the CDC did contribute to developing a wider solution along with jobs, housing and education and training. “When the CDC was first introduced it did have a noticeable impact in the community but diminished over time due to people gaining more cash for alcohol. “I’m not sure what the statistics are on the crime rate but the big losers are always the children and those most vulnerable. “The wider community does have an obligation to make sure vulnerable people and children are safe in our community and we must continue to strive to ensure that they are.” A spokeswoman for Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth said there was no evidence the cashless debit card worked or reduced the complex social issues in communities. “It’s important our responses are developed in partnership with local communities and that’s what we’ll continue to do. “We’ve already delivered a significant package of support to CDC communities to continue current community support services and establish new services. “We will also deliver $49.9 million for additional alcohol and other drug treatment services and support in CDC sites and $17 million for community-led and designed initiatives to support economic and employment opportunities in CDC sites. “In the Kimberley, we’ve also funded the expansion of the emergency food and essentials relief provided by the Kununurra community kitchen garden, the expansion of the youth social and emotional well-being program provided by the Wyndham Youth Aboriginal Corporation and funding for family and domestic violence services and awareness resources.”