I WAS extremely disappointed with the article “Welfare proposal ‘offensive'” on page 3 in The Catholic Leader, dated May 7.
This surely is Australia, not Africa, where one buries one’s head in the sand.
Catholic Social Services Australia (CSSA) has rejected Minister Mal Brough’s thoughts as “offensive and shortsighted”.
Surely to goodness any ideas or any thoughts on helping people at least deserve a decent look at and discussion.
For how long has the CSSA or its predecessor, Catholic Welfare Australia, trodden the same path and used the same solutions and are still surrounded by the same problems?
Many years ago I was fairly heavily involved in a small St Vincent de Paul conference.
In the greatest majority of cases the problem was not lack of money but lack of economic management of that money.
My wife and I wished to help these people budget but this was considered an invasion of people’s rights and privacy.
So we continued to hand out vouchers to people who had no bread on Monday mornings for school lunches, otherwise we would carefully step over empty stubbies as we visited the “needy”.
CSSA executive director Frank Quinlan says, “But we need comprehensive reform of the welfare and taxation system, not further humiliation.”
I agree that there is a problem going from welfare payments to work, and these should be sorted out. But humiliation?
Never did anyone say that they did not wish to take a voucher into a corner store or takeaway or supermarket because they would feel belittled or humiliated.
Mr Quinlan and CSSA please at least open your minds and allow any fresh thoughts and ideas to enter.
BOB ARCHIBALD
Landsborough, Qld
