John Stainsby from the Australian Council of Social Service agreed:

The bill before Parliament today was not intended to give police extra powers over people on low incomes. It was intended to resolve issues for people who had debts unlawfully raised under the
income-apportionment calculation.
It is right that the Government is trying to make progress on that issue. But we are not here talking
about income apportionment today.

We are talking about Schedule 5, which was introduced via
amendment – after proper parliamentary scrutiny was no longer possible – and which does
something entirely unrelated to the rest of the bill.

Schedule 5 gives the policing Minister new powers to cancel a person’s income support payment if
they are accused of a serious crime – crucially, before they have been charged.

This is a dangerous step towards using the social security system as a policing tool, and it overrides
the presumption of innocence, a fundamental legal principle.

There is no evidence this will make the community safer. There are no robust protections for
dependants, including children. And the measure will exacerbate systemic inequality – particularly
for groups who already face disproportionate contact with the justice system, including First Nations people and people with disability.
Because it was inserted late, Schedule 5 avoided assessment by the Parliamentary Joint Committee
on Human Rights.
This proposal faces opposition across the community – from legal experts, community organisations, and groups representing marginalised people. It threatens rights and liberties we all value.
ACOSS joins legal experts and community advocates in urging the Government to remove Schedule 5 from this bill.