Lessons from Robodebt not learnt: Federal Budget forces withdrawal of welfare advocacy services
From 1 July Welfare Rights Centre, a key advocacy organisation during Robodebt, will start winding down its services following the failure of the Federal Budget to provide additional funding to the community legal sector.
WRC specialises in social security law, providing free legal assistance to NSW residents to access vital income support from Centrelink. WRC is unique and the sole service in NSW of its kind.
Thousands of NSW residents will be impacted by the reduction in Welfare Rights Centre’s services. From 1 July, the Welfare Rights Centre will:
- reduce its legal and information services by at least 30%, leaving more than 2000 people a year with no help at all
- cancel its First Nations Access Program, leaving hundreds of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with out information and advice about income support
- scale back its community worker training program, which means community workers won’t have the skills and expertise to help vulnerable people navigate Centrelink
- cancel plans to open a Community Worker hotline to provide rapid guidance to community workers supporting women to flee domestic violence and homeless people to find shelter
“Nothing has changed since Robodebt. We were inundated by people needing help with Centrelink problems and we are still inundated now. People need help to access income support they are entitled to. The systems are complicated, the law even more so. We need the Federal Government to demonstrate they not only support welfare rights organisations but support the people who need them. We need strong welfare rights services to make sure the system is fair. Otherwise, we could end up with another Robodebt”, says CEO Katherine Boyle.
Katherine Boyle gave evidence at the Robodebt Royal Commission, and along with other welfare advocates was praised by Minister for Government Services, Bill Shorten MP. Despite this, the Federal Government has chosen to ignore her desperate pleas for additional funding, leaving the Centre to face up to a 40% drop from July 1 2024. Without the on-going support of the Federal Government, Welfare Rights Centre have to make at least three staff redundant, leading to a loss of expertise and experience gained over many years.
For more information contact Katherine Boyle on 9211 5389 or at [email protected]
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