Matt O'Sullivan (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Maybe it's a prettier plastic. That's right, Senator Cadell. It's no different. In fact, if you go onto the Department of Social Service's website—I'm happy to table this if required—there's a comparison between the BasicsCard and the new SmartCard, and it lists differences between the two. It also lists with it the enhanced income management and cashless debit card and SmartCard, and lumps them altogether because they are exactly the same card. They are exactly the same feature. Communities making this transition off the BasicsCard are provided with information about the benefits of the new card, such as product level blocking. That was an enhancement of the cashless debit card that we put in place when we were in government. So, while we're not supporting the disallowance and we're supportive of the government's transition in this regard, we do call on the government to put the cashless debit card back in place and respond to the needs of communities that are calling for the cashless debit card to be reinstated. Do it because it's a matter of life and urgency in these communities. If there's a backflip you can make in relation to an election commitment, granted it was an election commitment to abolish it, it's one that we'll support you to make. It is absolutely necessary. In fact, you should make it available to other communities that would like to see it as well.