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“Completely tacky”: Bride slammed for asking for dinner payment

<p dir="ltr">A bride has caused a stir online after asking if it is appropriate to ask her wedding guests to pay for their meal when they RSVP to the big day. </p> <p dir="ltr">The woman took to a popular wedding Facebook page to ask the opinions of other brides, sharing an example of her invitation created by her wedding planner. </p> <p dir="ltr">The invitation asks guests to confirm whether or not they will be attending the nuptials, before asking if the guest intends to eat at the wedding ceremony, and which meal they would prefer. </p> <p dir="ltr">The price of each meal was also included: $20 for grilled chicken with rice, mashed potatoes and green beans and $25 for a salmon alternative.</p> <p dir="ltr">“We invite you to eat with us but ask for you to provide your own payment. Please select which meal you'd prefer,” the invite stated. </p> <p dir="ltr">“My wedding venue requires me to purchase food through them for the reception, but has said people sometimes choose this option,” the woman wrote on Facebook. </p> <p dir="ltr">“Nothing about my reception is very typical anyway, SO I'm wondering how insane or rude or cost-effective/smart this is.”</p> <p dir="ltr">“The planner set me this as an example of how to present it to guests.”</p> <p dir="ltr">But when the post was quickly criticised by others, the bride clarified the event was more of a “fun dinner party” rather than a “wedding” as she and her partner had already legally married five months prior. </p> <p dir="ltr">“Ultimately I'll do what I want BUT I did not choose this option. It was only a suggestion from the venue that I was curious about others' opinions on,” she added. </p> <p dir="ltr">“This is for the reception. I'm most definitely not asking for money or gifts and by the time they come to the reception, we will have already been married for five months.”</p> <p dir="ltr">The post was shared in another wedding shaming Facebook group and critiqued by dozens of wedding experts.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Oh hell no! This is completely tacky!” one wrote, another said, “So she asks if it is rude then gets offended when people say it's rude?”</p> <p dir="ltr">“I am a veteran pro planner and would NEVER suggest this!” another said. </p> <p dir="ltr">Someone else wrote, “I'm especially shaming the venue for suggesting that people often pawn off the cost of dinner to their guests. Encouraging rude behaviour.”</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image credits: Getty Images / Facebook</em></p>

Food & Wine

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Forcing people to repay welfare ‘loans’ traps them in a poverty cycle – where is the policy debate about that?

<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/hanna-wilberg-1466649">Hanna Wilberg</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-auckland-1305">University of Auckland</a></em></p> <p>The National Party’s <a href="https://www.1news.co.nz/2023/09/26/more-sanctions-for-unemployed-beneficiaries-under-national/">pledge to apply sanctions</a> to unemployed people receiving a welfare payment, if they are “persistently” failing to meet the criteria for receiving the benefit, has attracted plenty of comment and <a href="https://www.1news.co.nz/2023/09/26/nationals-benefit-sanctions-plan-cruel-dehumanising-greens/">criticism</a>.</p> <p>Less talked about has been the party’s promise to index benefits to inflation to keep pace with the cost of living. This might at least provide some relief to those struggling to make ends meet on welfare, though is not clear how much difference it would make to the current system of indexing benefits to wages.</p> <p>In any case, this alone it is unlikely to break the cycle of poverty many find themselves in.</p> <p>One of the major drivers of this is the way the welfare system pushes some of the most vulnerable people into debt with loans for things such as school uniforms, power bills and car repairs.</p> <p>The government provides one-off grants to cover benefit shortfalls. But most of these grants are essentially loans.</p> <p>People receiving benefits are required to repay the government through weekly deductions from their normal benefits – which leaves them with even less money to survive on each week.</p> <p>With <a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/pou-tiaki/132980318/auckland-mother-serves-up-cereal-for-dinner-due-to-rising-food-costs">rising costs</a>, the situation is only getting worse for many of the 351,756 New Zealanders <a href="https://figure.nz/chart/TtiUrpceJruy058e-ITw010dHsM6bvA2a">accessing one of the main benefits</a>.</p> <h2>Our whittled down welfare state</h2> <p>Broadly, there are three levels of government benefits in our current system.</p> <p>The main benefits (such as jobseeker, sole parent and supported living payment) <a href="https://www.workandincome.govt.nz/products/benefit-rates/benefit-rates-april-2023.html">pay a fixed weekly amount</a>. The jobseeker benefit rate is set at NZ$337.74 and sole parents receive $472.79 a week.</p> <p>Those on benefits have access to a second level of benefits – weekly supplementary benefits such as an <a href="https://www.workandincome.govt.nz/products/a-z-benefits/accommodation-supplement.html">accommodation supplement</a> and other allowances or tax credits.</p> <p>The third level of support is one-off discretionary payments for specific essential needs.</p> <p>Those on benefits cannot realistically make ends meet without repeated use of these one-off payments, unless they use assistance from elsewhere – such as family, charity or borrowing from loan sharks.</p> <p>This problem has been building for decades.</p> <h2>Benefits have been too low for too long</h2> <p>In the 1970s, the <a href="https://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/12967">Royal Commission on Social Security</a> declared the system should provide “a standard of living consistent with human dignity and approaching that enjoyed by the majority”.</p> <p>But Ruth Richardson’s “<a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/christchurch-life/124978983/1991-the-mother-of-all-budgets">mother of all budgets</a>” in 1991 slashed benefits. Rates never recovered and today’s <a href="https://www.1news.co.nz/2022/03/29/benefit-increases-will-still-leave-families-locked-in-poverty/">benefits are not enough to live on</a>.</p> <p>In 2018, the <a href="https://www.weag.govt.nz/">Welfare Expert Advisory Group</a> looked at how much money households need in two lifestyle scenarios: bare essentials and a minimum level of participation in the community, such as playing a sport and taking public transport.</p> <p>The main benefits plus supplementary allowances did not meet the cost of the bare essentials, let alone minimal participation.</p> <p>The Labour government has since <a href="https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/government-delivers-income-increases-over-14-million-new-zealanders">increased benefit rates</a>, meaning they are now slightly above those recommended by the advisory group. But those recommendations were made in 2019 and don’t take into account the <a href="https://www.stats.govt.nz/news/annual-inflation-at-6-0-percent">sharp rise in inflation</a> since then.</p> <p>Advocacy group <a href="https://fairerfuture.org.nz/">Fairer Future</a> published an updated assessment in 2022 – nine out of 13 types of households still can’t meet their core costs with the current benefit rates.</p> <h2>How ‘advances’ create debt traps</h2> <p>When they don’t have money for an essential need, people on benefits can receive a “special needs grant”, which doesn’t have to be repaid. But in practice, Work and Income virtually never makes this type of grant for anything except food and some other specific items, such as some health travel costs or emergency dental treatment.</p> <p>For <a href="https://www.1news.co.nz/2023/02/27/very-stressful-beneficiary-says-he-cant-afford-msd-debt/">all other essential needs</a> – such as school uniforms, car repairs, replacing essential appliances, overdue rent, power bills and tenancy bonds – a one-off payment called an “advance” is used. Advances are loans and have to be paid back.</p> <p>There are several issues with these types of loans.</p> <p>First, people on benefits are racking up thousands of dollars worth of debts to cover their essential needs. It serves to trap them in financial difficulties for the foreseeable future.</p> <p>As long as they remain on benefits or low incomes, it’s difficult to repay these debts. And the <a href="https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2018/0032/latest/whole.html">Social Security Act 2018</a> doesn’t allow the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) to waive debts.</p> <h2>Contradictory policies</h2> <p>Another problem is that people on benefits have to start repaying their debt straight away, with weekly deductions coming out of their already limited benefit.</p> <p>Each new advance results in a further weekly deduction. Often these add up to $50 a week or more. MSD policy says repayments should not add up to more than $40 a week, but that is often ignored.</p> <p>This happens because the law stipulates that each individual debt should be repaid in no more than two years, unless there are exceptional circumstances. Paying this debt off in two years often requires total deductions to be much higher than $40.</p> <p>The third issue is that one-off payments can be refused regardless of the need. That is because there are two provisions pulling in opposite directions.</p> <p>On the one hand the law says a payment should be made if not making it would cause serious hardship. But on the other hand, the law also says payments should not be made if the person already has too much debt.</p> <p>People receiving benefits and their case managers face the choice between more debt and higher repayments, or failing to meet an essential need.</p> <h2>Ways to start easing the burden</h2> <p>So what is the fix? A great deal could be achieved by just changing the policies and practices followed by Work and Income.</p> <p>Case managers have the discretion to make non-recoverable grants for non-food essential needs. These could and should be used when someone has an essential need, particularly when they already have significant debt.</p> <p>Weekly deductions for debts could also be automatically made very low.</p> <p>When it comes to changing the law, the best solution would be to make weekly benefit rates adequate to live on.</p> <p>The government could also make these benefit debts similar to student loans, with no repayments required until the person is off the benefit and their income is above a certain threshold.</p> <p>However we do it, surely it must be time to do something to fix this poverty trap.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/212528/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/hanna-wilberg-1466649"><em>Hanna Wilberg</em></a><em>, Associate professor - Law, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-auckland-1305">University of Auckland</a></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images </em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/forcing-people-to-repay-welfare-loans-traps-them-in-a-poverty-cycle-where-is-the-policy-debate-about-that-212528">original article</a>.</em></p>

Money & Banking

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Lump sum, daily payments or a combination? What to consider when paying for nursing home accommodation

<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/anam-bilgrami-1179543">Anam Bilgrami</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/macquarie-university-1174">Macquarie University</a></em></p> <p>Moving yourself or a loved one to a nursing home can be <a href="https://theconversation.com/should-we-move-our-loved-one-with-dementia-into-a-nursing-home-6-things-to-consider-when-making-this-tough-decision-189770">emotional and difficult</a>. While some have their nursing home accommodation costs fully covered by the government (based on a <a href="https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/how-much-will-i-pay">means test</a>), most will have to pay their own way.</p> <p>The average lump sum room value is <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/2021/08/ninth-report-on-the-funding-and-financing-of-the-aged-care-industry-july-2021.pdf">A$334,000</a>. Choosing how to pay can make this time even more challenging, particularly for those with <a href="https://theconversation.com/would-you-pass-this-financial-literacy-quiz-many-wont-and-its-affecting-expensive-aged-care-decisions-175063">low financial literacy</a>.</p> <p>This is an important and complex decision. It can affect your income, wealth, means-tested aged care fee, and bequests. Here are some things to consider before you decide.</p> <h2>3 ways to pay</h2> <p>You can <a href="https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/understanding-aged-care-home-accommodation-costs">pay</a> for a nursing home room in three ways.</p> <p>You can pay the entire room price as a one-off, refundable lump sum (a “refundable accommodation deposit”, sometimes shortened to RAD). This lump sum is refunded to the resident or their estate when the person leaves the nursing home (if they move or pass away).</p> <p>The refund is <a href="https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/aged-care-home-accommodation-refunds">guaranteed by the government</a>, even if a provider goes bankrupt.</p> <p>People who don’t want to pay a lump sum can instead choose rent-style, “daily accommodation payments” (sometimes shortened to DAP).</p> <p>These are fixed, daily interest-only payments calculated on the total room price. The rate at which they are calculated is known as the “maximum permissible interest rate” or MPIR.</p> <p>The maximum permissible interest rate is set by the government and is currently <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/2023-06/base-interest-rate-bir-and-maximum-permissible-interest-rate-mpir-for-residential-aged-care_0.pdf">7.9%</a> per annum. The <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/residential-aged-care/managing-residential-aged-care-services/managing-accommodation-payments-and-contributions-for-residential-aged-care#accommodation-payment">formula</a> for a daily accommodation payment is (RAD × MPIR) ÷ 365.</p> <p>Unlike lump sums, daily accommodation payments are not refunded.</p> <p>The third option is a <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/residential-aged-care/managing-residential-aged-care-services/managing-accommodation-payments-and-contributions-for-residential-aged-care#accommodation-payment">combination payment</a>. This means paying part of the room price as a lump sum, with daily payments calculated on the remaining room amount. On leaving the home, the part lump sum is refunded to the resident or their estate.</p> <p>With a combination payment, the consumer can choose to pay whatever amount they like for the lump sum.</p> <p>The table below shows three different ways someone could pay for a room priced at $400,000.</p> <figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540310/original/file-20230731-130241-shaphm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540310/original/file-20230731-130241-shaphm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/540310/original/file-20230731-130241-shaphm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=432&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540310/original/file-20230731-130241-shaphm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=432&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540310/original/file-20230731-130241-shaphm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=432&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540310/original/file-20230731-130241-shaphm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=542&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540310/original/file-20230731-130241-shaphm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=542&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/540310/original/file-20230731-130241-shaphm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=542&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 2262w" alt="" /></a><figcaption><span class="attribution"><a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure> <p>So which is best? It’s impossible to say. It depends on a person’s circumstances, family situation, finances, preferences and expected length of stay.</p> <h2>Why do some people choose a lump sum?</h2> <p>One downside of a lump sum (or part lump sum) is that choosing this option means this money is not invested elsewhere.</p> <p>By handing over the lump sum, for example, you forgo returns you could have made by investing this same money into property or stocks over the period of your nursing home stay.</p> <p>On the other hand, paying lump sum means you get to avoid the daily interest payments (the 7.9% in the table above).</p> <p>So you could potentially be better off paying a lump sum if you think there’s no way you could make investment returns on that money that are substantially higher than the interest you’d be charged through daily payments.</p> <p>One advantage of choosing a lump sum is it’s considered an <a href="https://www.dva.gov.au/get-support/health-support/care-home-or-aged-care/help-pay-home-or-aged-care/residential-aged-0">exempt asset</a> for pension purposes; some people may get more <a href="https://www.afr.com/wealth/personal-finance/five-things-you-need-to-know-about-aged-care-deposits-20200302-p54606">pension</a> if they pay the lump sum.</p> <p>The lump sum, however, does count as an asset in determining the <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/residential-aged-care/charging-for-residential-aged-care-services/residential-aged-care-fee-scenarios-for-people-entering-care-from-1-july-2014">means-tested care fee</a>.</p> <p>And if you sell your house, remember any money leftover after you pay the lump sum will be counted as assets when you’re means-tested for the pension and means-tested care fee.</p> <h2>Why might some people prefer daily payments?</h2> <p>Not everyone can can afford a lump sum. Some may not want to <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-it-worth-selling-my-house-if-im-going-into-aged-care-161674">sell their home</a> to pay one. Some may want to hold onto their house if they think property prices may increase in the future.</p> <p>Daily payments have recently overtaken lump sums as the most <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/2021/08/ninth-report-on-the-funding-and-financing-of-the-aged-care-industry-july-2021.pdf">popular payment option</a>, with 43% of people paying this way. However, recent <a href="https://amp-smh-com-au.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/amp.smh.com.au/money/super-and-retirement/aged-care-interest-rate-increase-sees-daily-payments-almost-double-20230324-p5cuz2.html">interest rate rises</a> may slow or reverse this trend.</p> <p>And if a spouse or “<a href="https://www.dva.gov.au/get-support/health-support/care-home-or-aged-care/residential-aged-care/aged-care-costs">protected person</a>” – such as a dependant or relative that meets certain criteria – is still living in the house, it’s also exempt from assets tests for the pension and other aged care fees.</p> <p>If the home is vacated by a protected person, its value is still excluded from the pension means test for <a href="https://www.dva.gov.au/get-support/health-support/care-home-or-aged-care/help-pay-home-or-aged-care/residential-aged-0">two years</a> (although rental income is still assessed).</p> <p>If you do not anticipate a lengthy nursing home stay, daily payments may potentially be the easiest option. But it’s best to consult a financial adviser.</p> <h2>What does the research say?</h2> <p>My <a href="https://www.mq.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/1190086/What-drives-end-of-life-financial-decisions.pdf">research</a> with colleagues found many people choose the lump sum option simply because they can afford to.</p> <p>Those <a href="https://ahes.org.au/portfolio-items/entering-aged-care/">owning residential property</a> are more likely to pay a lump sum, mostly because they can sell a house to get the money.</p> <p>People who consult financial advisers are also more likely to choose lump sums. This may be due to <a href="https://www.afr.com/wealth/aged-care-costs-most-opt-for-pay-as-you-go-20181023-h170g4">financial advice</a> suggesting it’s tough to earn investment returns higher than what you’d save by avoiding the interest charged in the daily payment option.</p> <p>Some aged care providers <a href="https://www.mq.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/1164243/the-role-of-refundable-accommodation-deposits-FINAL.pdf">prefer</a> lump sum payment since they <a href="https://www.agedcarequality.gov.au/providers/prudential-standards/permitted-use-refundable-deposits">use</a> these to renovate or refurbish their facilities. But providers are not allowed to influence or control your decision on how to pay.</p> <p>The recent Royal Commission into Aged Care recommended <a href="https://agedcare.royalcommission.gov.au/sites/default/files/2021-03/final-report-recommendations.pdf">phasing out</a> lump sums as a payment option, leaving only daily payments. While that would reduce the complexity of the payment decision and remove the incentive for providers to sway decisions, it would also reduce consumer choice.</p> <h2>Is there anything else I should know?</h2> <p>Some 60% of people we <a href="https://www.mq.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/1190086/What-drives-end-of-life-financial-decisions.pdf">surveyed</a> found the decision complex, while 54% said it was stressful.</p> <p>It is best to seek professional <a href="https://www.myagedcare.gov.au/understanding-aged-care-home-accommodation-costs#financial-advice">financial advice</a> before you decide.</p> <p>Services Australia also runs a free <a href="https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/what-financial-information-service?context=21836">Financial Information Service</a> that can help you better understand your finances and the payment decision. But it does not give <a href="https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/financial-information-service-officers?context=21836#a2">financial advice or prepare plans</a>.</p> <p>You have <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/residential-aged-care/managing-residential-aged-care-services/managing-accommodation-payments-and-contributions-for-residential-aged-care">28 days to choose a payment method</a> after admission, and six months to pay if you <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/residential-aged-care/managing-residential-aged-care-services/managing-accommodation-payments-and-contributions-for-residential-aged-care">choose a lump-sum payment</a>.</p> <p>In the interim, you will be charged daily interest payments on the room price.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/207405/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/anam-bilgrami-1179543">Anam Bilgrami</a>, Research Fellow, Macquarie University Centre for the Health Economy, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/macquarie-university-1174">Macquarie University</a></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/lump-sum-daily-payments-or-a-combination-what-to-consider-when-paying-for-nursing-home-accommodation-207405">original article</a>.</em></p>

Retirement Life

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Can you lend a paw this tax time to help cats in need?

<p>With a proud reputation of caring for cats for more than 60 years, the Cat Protection Society of NSW runs Sydney’s only no-kill shelter just for cats, as well as providing feline welfare programs to help cats and the people who love them. </p> <p>Cat Protection began in 1958 as a small group of people dedicated to reducing the number of street cats and while our organisation has grown over the years, our vision remains the same; that every cat deserves a loving and responsible home.</p> <p>Over the years, Cat Protection has helped literally hundreds of thousands of cats, kittens, and people. We’ve led the way in setting the standards for best-practice feline sheltering, and our health and welfare services extend far beyond our adoption centre. And while technology means we can offer a great range of free cat care resources online, we’ve never lost our human touch and we still help thousands of people every year with advice and tips on cat care by phone or in-person, at no cost. </p> <p>Our subsidised desexing, vaccination and microchipping programs promote cat health and welfare in the community and our newest program, Adopt-a-Stray, offers a complete and affordable package for those who wish to fully welcome a street cat into their heart and home. </p> <p>What sets us apart from many other animal shelters is our holistic approach to each individual cat or human client. Cats are not given a time limit, although most are adopted within days or weeks. Every cat is individually assessed and provided with a care plan to meet their unique needs. If they need complex surgery, allergy trials or behavioural interventions our highly qualified team will work with veterinarians and specialists to ensure the cat gets everything they need to set them on the path to living their best life.</p> <p>A kind person found Snake, a four-week-old sickly orphaned kitten. In addition to cat flu, our vets identified corneal scarring in his right eye, a blocked tear duct, and an adhesion on his eyelid restricting the normal movement of his third eyelid. Treatment resolved the flu and improved his eye, but Snake will live with limited vision in that eye. This has not dampened his playfulness or zest for life.</p> <p>As well as poor physical health, orphaned kittens miss out on the important lessons of being a cat from their mum and siblings, and this can lead to behavioural issues. Where we can, we will make sure such kittens get to join a stepfamily, but in cases such as Snake’s, illness means that isn’t always possible. It is then up to our human team to work with these little ones to help them learn to navigate the world with good manners!</p> <p>In contrast, Banjo had all the behavioural benefits of his brother but alas at seven weeks of age Banjo weighed only 560 grams while his brother Clancy weighed 900 grams!  </p> <p>Banjo was diagnosed with a rare form of congenital hypothyroidism. Because his condition was diagnosed early, his prognosis is very good. He was started on a medication called Thyroxine and went back into foster care so that we could monitor his progress and adjust the dose of his medication as necessary with follow-up blood tests. After six weeks in foster care, Banjo graduated to the adoption centre. He will need to be on Thyroxine for the rest of his life, but that didn’t daunt his new family who’ve told us Banjo is now thriving in his loving forever home.</p> <p>From individualised TLC and veterinary care for every cat and kitten, to helping human clients resolve cat challenges (from furniture scratching to strata bans) and strategic research and advocacy on behalf of people and cats, Cat Protection’s impact is so much greater than our budget. </p> <p>As an independent registered charity for cats, we’re dependent on donations and bequests to do our work. We are compliant, open and transparent; on our website you can see our audited annual reports for details of what we do and what it costs.</p> <p>We have a strict “no harassment” fundraising policy which means under no circumstances will your information be sold on, and we do not employ pressure-tactics or door-to-door solicitations. </p> <p>We don’t spend money paying fundraising companies to ring you at dinner time asking for money or send you five-page long letters insisting you give more. And we never will. </p> <p>Donations are invested in helping our feline friends and nurturing the unique bond between cats and people. Your generosity will mean that we can continue to help thousands of cats and people each year.</p> <p>If you can lend a paw, please <a href="https://www.givenow.com.au/catprotectionsocietynsw" target="_blank" rel="noopener">make your tax-deductible donation here</a>! </p> <p>For general advice on cat care and everything feline, call the Cat Protection Society of NSW on 02 9557 4818 or visit <a href="https://catprotection.org.au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">catprotection.org.au</a>  </p> <p><em>Images: Supplied.</em></p> <p><em>This is a sponsored article produced in partnership with the <span style="font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;">Cat Protection Society of NSW.</span></em></p>

Family & Pets

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"Get a job": Ben Fordham slammed over interview with welfare recipient

<p>Ben Fordham has come under fire for a patronising interview with a welfare recipient, in which he tried to get the man, who is unable to work, a job live on air. </p> <p>On Wednesday morning, the 2GB radio host spoke with Jez Heywood, who is president of the Australian Unemployed Workers’ Union, and has been out of work since 2017 due to several health conditions. </p> <p>Mr Heywood had recently spoken to <em>The Australian</em>, sharing his frustration about the $20-a-week increase to Jobseeker, saying he was “angry” and “annoyed” at the federal government, describing the $2.85-a-day increase as “absolutely nothing”.</p> <p>Mr Heywood's commentary on the Jobseeker budget increase caught the attention of 2GB, who invited him to speak to Fordham, saying he “wanted to see whether we can find Jez a job”.</p> <p>Fordham asked Heywood if he was looking for work, to which Heywood shared that he is looking for work, but it is hard to find a job that would be suitable given his physical and mental health barriers. </p> <p>In response, Fordham told Heywood that "there are 54,000 jobs available right now in Melbourne".</p> <p>"That’s on the Workforce Australia website. So none of those 54,000 jobs are suitable to you or you’ve applied for them and they’re just not giving you the nod?"</p> <p>Heywood said he is applying for jobs that are "suitable" for his conditions, and is hearing nothing back from prospective employers. </p> <p>Fordham said a job would seemingly fix everything for Heywood, saying, "I reckon we can help your mental health if we get you into a job."</p> <p>Heywood seemingly appreciated the help, but also said it is important for him to consider what he is able to achieve in a job given his limitations. </p> <p>The tense exchange between Fordham and Heywood continued, as Heywood voiced his concerns and limitations with working, as Fordham seemed to dismiss his worries and said everything would be fine if he simply returned to work as a graphic designer. </p> <p>After the call, Heywood took aim at Fordham on social media, slamming the host as a “coward and a bully who’s been taking potshots at welfare recipients from the safety of his cosy radio studio for years”.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">You're a dog Ben Fordham</p> <p>— Vulgar Boatman (@satisjacktion) <a href="https://twitter.com/satisjacktion/status/1658691768706269184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 17, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">I’ve never met a dole bludger. </p> <p>I *have* met plenty of people with unresolved trauma and mental and physical illnesses (often not-yet-diagnosed), who probably LOOK like bludgers, through a telephoto lens. </p> <p>People who are doing okay WANT to be busy and to work.</p> <p>— Catherine Caine (@CatherineCaine) <a href="https://twitter.com/CatherineCaine/status/1658665436916101120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 17, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <p>He stood by his opinion that the Jobseeker payment should be at least $88 a day to keep recipients above the poverty line, and condemned Fordham for “calling me a dole bludger on national radio”.</p> <p>Fordham doubled down on his condescending treatment of Mr Heywood, saying, "I just want to find you a job, Jez."</p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images / Twitter</em></p>

Money & Banking

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“Extremely difficult”: Woman forced to live in car for over two years

<p> A Queensland woman has revealed the “extremely lonely” reality of living in her car.</p> <p>Wendy lived in shared accommodation for seven years, with a weekly room rent upwards of $200 a week.</p> <p>With the rent increases showing no signs of slowing down, the 52-year-old found herself living in her car for the past two and a half years.</p> <p>She has shared some tips for those in the same boat.</p> <p>“Downsize to the bare necessities you need, with just those few little luxuries like a good coffee and the barbecues,” Wendy said.</p> <p>She allows herself some luxuries, such as a gym membership, so she can have a shower, coffee and the occasional hot dinner.</p> <p>If she can’t keep up with her gym payments, Wendy exercises until she’s warm and hops into one of the cold public showers.</p> <p>She worked in construction cleaning, but the early start and late finishes became too difficult.</p> <p>“Transforming my car into a cleaning business was, as you can imagine, a bit unhygienic,” she said.</p> <p>She relies on welfare to get by, which is “extremely hard”.</p> <p>Wendy has a storage shed to help her keep some of her belongings, but the cost of that will see an increase from $45 to $60 a week,</p> <p>“I’m now going to even be pushed out of the storage,” she said.</p> <p>Wendy can access fresh food just once a fortnight when she visits Encircle Redcliffe Neighbourhood Centre, Queensland, otherwise, she’s stuck with a 3-day time frame of storing food in her car.</p> <p>Now with winter just around the corner, she parks her car in underground car parks to shelter from the elements.</p> <p>“As soon as they see you on camera, they’re concerned about me being there,” she said.</p> <p>“So I will be kicked out of there soon too.”</p> <p>It feels as though those in power have “turned a blind eye” to the reality of the housing crisis, Wendy said.</p> <p>“There’s no help out there for us, I’ve applied for housing and been denied.”</p> <p>The extra $40 announced in the federal budget for people on welfare was “definitely not enough”, Wendy said.</p> <p>Even going to the doctor has become “extremely hard”, Wendy said, as many have stopped bulk billing, which has forced her to travel further to find those who do so.</p> <p>She’s now facing car troubles, which only furthers her challenging situation.</p> <p>“I’m only using my car if it’s really necessary,” she said.</p> <p>Aside from discomfort, Wendy confessed living out of her car was “extremely lonely”.</p> <p>“It’s intimidating when people are walking past and staring at you — you feel like an extreme oddball in this world.”</p> <p><em>Image credit: 7NEWS</em></p>

Real Estate

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Federal Budget 2023: How to make the most of the key promises

<p dir="ltr">Treasurer Jim Charles has handed down his first budget for 2023/24, offering a series of measures aimed at tackling the cost-of-living crisis.</p> <p dir="ltr">Millions of Australians will receive a boost from the federal government medical care, bills and welfare payments, amid the forecast that the budget will be be in the black with a surplus of $4bn.</p> <p dir="ltr">Here’s what it means for you:</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>Bill help</strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Those who are on the pension, a seniors card holder or a recipient of family tax benefits A and B will be eligible to get help with energy bills thanks to a deal between the states and Commonwealth that’s worth $1.5bn.</p> <p dir="ltr">That means over five million eligible households and one million eligible small businesses will benefit from the scheme.</p> <p dir="ltr">The relief will come in the form of credits that apply directly to their power bills rather than cash, and the amount they receive will depend on the state they live in.</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>Medicare Relief</strong></p> <p dir="ltr">The incentives paid to GPs who bulk bill 11.6m eligible Australians including children under 16, pensioners and other concession card holders will increase.</p> <p dir="ltr">GPs will be able to claim the incentives for in-person consultations over six minutes long and certain telehealth consultations.</p> <p dir="ltr">GPs who bulk bill patients in the city will be paid a new incentive of $20.65 compared to the previous rate of $6.60, while regional GPs will receive a $31.40 incentive, up from $10.05.</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>Welfare recipients</strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Over 1.1 million vulnerable Australians will benefit from a $40 fortnightly boost from September, if parliament agrees.</p> <p dir="ltr">The increased base rate will apply to people receiving JobSeeker, Youth Allowance, Parenting Payment (partnered), ABSTUDY, Disability Support Pension (Youth) and Special Benefit.</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>Rental assistance</strong></p> <p dir="ltr">For many renters, this budget means that rent is forecasted to increase over the next year as the market tightens.</p> <p dir="ltr">However, for those currently receiving the maximum Commonwealth Rent Assistance allowance their payments will increase by 15 per cent.</p> <p dir="ltr">Here’s what the Federal Budget will look like at a glance:</p> <ul> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Budget deficit of $13.9 billion in 2023/24</p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Commonwealth net debt to rise to $574.9 billion (22.3 per cent of GDP) in 2023/24</p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Economic growth to fall to 1.5 per cent in 2023/24</p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Unemployment rate to rise to 4.25 per cent in 2023/24</p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Inflation as measured by CPI to be 3.25 per cent in 2023/24</p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Wages to rise by four per cent in 2023/24</p> </li> </ul> <p dir="ltr"> </p> <p dir="ltr">And here are the key measures the federal budget has promised:</p> <ul> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Energy bill relief for five million households and one million businesses</p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Triple bulk-billing incentives and more funding for urgent care clinics</p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Base rate of JobSeeker and other payments to be raised for 1.1 million households</p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Commonwealth Rent Assistant rise for 1.1 million households</p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Housing boost including tax breaks for build-to-rent investors</p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">$4 billion extra for renewable energy</p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Tax breaks for small business to write-off assets and reduce energy costs</p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Targeted help for jobless aged over 55</p> </li> <li dir="ltr"> <p dir="ltr">Cut to cost of medicines</p> </li> </ul> <p><em>Image: Getty Images/ Martin Ollman / Stringer</em></p>

Money & Banking

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Over-55s the only group to receive Centrelink payment boost

<p>Older recipients of JobSeeker will receive a higher welfare payment as the federal budget is set to include an increase in payments for 227,000 Aussies.</p> <p>According to <em>7News</em>, the budget will include an increase in the base rate of the JobSeeker for people aged 55 and above.</p> <p>The change honours Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ promise that an increase “will be focused on the most vulnerable”.</p> <p>Finance Minister Katy Gallagher previously committed to a “significant improvement” in terms of the budget.</p> <p>When asked if the rate of JobSeeker would be lifted, Gallagher revealed the budget would contain “ongoing” investments to help people with cost-of-living pressures, in addition to one-off measures.</p> <p>“This budget will have a significant cost-of-living package and that cost-of-living package will be targeted to the most vulnerable Australians,” she said.</p> <p>About 227,000 Jobseeker recipients are 55 and over, which is the highest number of any age group and the group most likely to be unemployed long-term, meaning they are without a job for five years or more.</p> <p>The majority of people in this group are women.</p> <p>Senior sources reportedly told <em>7News</em> that the increase will be modest, not the $100-a-week advocates are hoping for but what the budget can afford.</p> <p>The change is unlikely to please Raise the Rate campaigners, who have called for the government to bring payments above the poverty line.</p> <p><em>7News </em>reported that the government will sell the moderate increase as a “responsible first step”, an increase that will help the most vulnerable of JobSeeker recipients and honours its election commitment to do what it can to help within the restraints of the budget.</p> <p>The pressure continues to pile up for the government to substantially increase income support payments above $49.50 a day for singles on JobSeeker and $40.20 a day for Youth Allowance.</p> <p>An open letter to the Prime Minister, which has been signed by more than 300 politicians, community advocates and prolific Aussies, called for an increase to be included in the budget to support those most in need.</p> <p>“Right now, the rate of JobSeeker is so low that people are being forced to choose between paying their rent or buying enough food and medicine,” the letter, coordinated by the Australian Council of Social Service, read.</p> <p>In 2022, the council’s research found six in 10 people on income support were eating less or reporting difficulty getting medicine or care due to their inadequate income. This increased to seven in 10 in March 2023.</p> <p>The budget plans to extend single-parenting payments and increase rental assistance - particularly for women.</p> <p>Around $120 billion in Morrison Government road and rail projects will be reviewed and money reprioritised, with hundreds of smaller projects likely to be stopped.</p> <p><em>Image credit: Getty</em></p>

Money & Banking

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Jackie O sends welfare check for concerning caller

<p>Radio giant Jackie ‘O’ Henderson has requested a welfare check for a listener after receiving a distressing phone call on The Kyle and Jackie O show.</p> <p>The caller, Michael, who made it on air at about 6:30 am during the First Calls segment on the show, proceeded to sing a song about suicide, blindsiding the presenters.</p> <p>The song was Fade to Black by U.S heavy metal band Metallica, from their 1984 album <em>Ride the Lightning</em>. The bleak track is about wondering if life is worth living and wishing for death.</p> <p>Michael did not advise the hosts that he would be singing the song, and had told producer ‘Intern Pete’ Deppeler off air that he was a ‘comedian’ and ‘had a few jokes to tell’.</p> <p>Henderson seemed concerned and asked the team to make sure the listener was okay.</p> <p>The dismal segment started soon after an ad break, with host Kyle Sandilands asking, “You want to ring up for anything? First Calls, 13 10 65 will get you through. Michael has called in. Hey, Michael.”</p> <p>“Hello,” Michael responded, sounding dismal, which the hosts recognised was off as Sandilands was quick to mimic ‘hello’ back.</p> <p>Sandilands asked how the listener was doing, to which Michael replied, “Oh, not bad. I [inaudible] have a quick ten-second song I'd like to... sing for you.”</p> <p>'What, sorry? A song?' Henderson asked.</p> <p>“It goes like this,” Michael said, before singing the lyrics to Fade to Black, “.. lost the will to live / Simply nothing more to give / There is nothing more for me / Need the end to set me free.”</p> <p>Michael put his own spin on the song, singing lyrics that don’t appear on the track, “Never cared for no one else” before quickly hanging up.</p> <p>“Don't be like that…”, a baffled Sandilands said after Michael abruptly ended the call.</p> <p>Henderson feared the worst, immediately asking producers, “Is he alright? That didn't sound good, guys. What were you getting off air? Because that sounded like a goodbye song to me.”</p> <p>Sandilands tried to reassure Henderson, saying “He seems fine. He seems fine.”</p> <p>Deppeler, who had spoken to Michael during the ad break and briefed him on what would be discussed on air said, “He was normal to me,”</p> <p>When Henderson asked what they’d spoken about during the ad break, Deppeler told the presenter, "He said, 'I'm a comedian, I've got a few jokes to tell, I've got a new song.'”</p> <p>“So he went rogue on you?' Henderson asked, with Deppeler replying, “A little bit rogue, yeah”.</p> <p>Henderson asked Deppeler to “call him back and check he's okay,” adding, "He just hung up and said this is the end for me. Just check he's alright, that guy.”</p> <p>She awkwardly laughed as she and Sandilands scolded Deppeler for having such a grim listener as the first caller following a two-week break.</p> <p>The presenters then moved on to the second caller, A woman called Debbie.</p> <p><em><strong>Help is available, speak with someone today.</strong></em></p> <p><em><strong>Crisis support is available from <a href="https://www.lifeline.org.au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lifeline</a> on 13 11 14.</strong></em></p> <p><em><strong>Support is available from <a href="https://www.beyondblue.org.au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Beyond Blue</a> on 1300 22 4636.</strong></em></p> <p><em>Image credit: Instagram</em></p>

Caring

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A horse died on the set of The Rings of Power: more needs to be done to ensure the welfare of horses used in entertainment

<p>The recent <a href="https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/rings-of-power-horse-death-lord-of-the-rings-peta-1235564884/">death of a horse</a> on the set of Amazon’s <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7631058/">The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power</a> is the latest incident raising questions about how humans use horses for entertainment and sport.</p> <p>While a statement from producers said the horses’s cardiac arrest occurred before the day’s filming began, animal rights activists PETA used the death to call on all screen producers to replace on-set horses with CGI and mechanical rig alternatives.</p> <p>The incident feeds into growing public concern about horse welfare on film and TV sets, at the track and in equestrian sports.</p> <p>But improving horse welfare is about more than just reputation repair – too often it’s about survival for horses and humans.</p> <h2>Horse welfare in film and TV</h2> <p>The riding of a horse over a cliff to its death for the movie Jesse James (1939) led to the establishment of <a href="https://humanehollywood.org/about-us/">American Humane</a>, which now oversees around 100,000 animals on more than 1,000 productions each year.</p> <p>While things have improved since the early days of film and television, deaths and mistreatment of horses still occur.</p> <p>In 1987, on the set of <a href="https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/118307194">The Man From Snowy River II</a>, a seriously injured horse was killed using the blunt end of an axe.</p> <p>More recently, the high-profile series <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/the-real-story-behind-hbos-cancellation-of-luck">Luck</a>, starring Dustin Hoffman, was cancelled following the deaths of three horses.</p> <h2>The good and bad of unprecedented global exposure</h2> <p>In 2021, the Tokyo Olympics beamed to a global audience the excessive <a href="https://7news.com.au/sport/olympics/peta-calls-for-abusive-equestrian-events-to-be-axed-from-olympics-c-3703388">whipping and punching</a> of modern pentathlon horse Saint Boy and show jumper Kilkenny’s <a href="https://www.chronofhorse.com/article/kilkenny-suffers-nosebleed-during-olympic-individual-final">spectacular nosebleed</a> during the controversial show jumping program.</p> <p>While the bleed must have been obvious, officials did not intervene to stop the ride.</p> <p>Confronting images, and the perceived failure of organisers to protect the horses involved, brought into clear and global focus the indisputable welfare issues faced by horses competing at the elite level.</p> <p>The global outcry led to <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-9892093/Name-price-Kaley-Cuoco-offers-buy-horse-cruelly-punched-Olympics.html">actress Kaley Cuoco offering to buy Saint Boy</a> and the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2021/nov/02/modern-pentathlon-votes-to-ditch-horse-riding-after-tokyo-olympic-turmoil">withdrawal of the equestrian phase from modern pentathlon</a>.</p> <h2>Risk to humans and horses</h2> <p>Horse welfare does not just impact animals.</p> <p>Since the 1840s, 873 jockeys are known to have <a href="https://www.thoroughbredracing.com/articles/2062/facts-and-figures-jockey-fatalities-australia/">died in race falls</a> in Australia.</p> <p>Internationally, the sport of eventing (where competitors complete three phases: dressage, show jumping and cross-country) reported 38 rider and 65 horse fatalities during or after competition between 2007-15.</p> <p>Riding horses is considered one of the most <a href="https://beva.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/evj.13934">dangerous of all sporting pursuits</a>, and the deaths of riders and jockeys, usually from falls, are common.</p> <p>Public concern about risk to horses and humans through horse racing and equestrian sports, as well as screen production, also <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/12/15/1987">threaten these industries’ social licence</a>.</p> <h2>Better horse welfare is related to better rider safety</h2> <p>Our research offers hope for the horse industry and for those passionate about riding horses.</p> <p>Last year, we <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0168159121003269">published a paper</a> demonstrating the link between horse welfare and rider safety. We asked riders how they cared for their horses and how their horses behaved when ridden – for example, we wanted to know how often horses were bucking or rearing.</p> <p>From this information, we calculated a relative welfare score for each horse. We also asked riders about their accidents and injuries.</p> <p>After analysing the data from over 400 riders, we found the higher the horse welfare score, the fewer accidents and injuries a rider reported.</p> <p>In a <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08927936.2023.2176589">subsequent study</a>, we found horses with better welfare scores are more enjoyable to ride, most likely because they perform better and riders feel more in control, creating a win-win for horses and riders.</p> <h2>Good horse welfare means more than good health</h2> <p>Often good welfare is thought of in terms of an animal being healthy.</p> <p>While this is part of good welfare, good health alone is not enough – especially for a horse competing at the elite level or taking part in a film.</p> <p>Horses are <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168159117300710?casa_token=5E77h_TYKGEAAAAA:EUBGz7BTnACvpvB_3iYM-urXpBxJbS95G0-05yMRJEbMTg_SEeb_VnSoVgn35su8_aNOZEpSqctL">neophobes</a> – this means they find new things frightening – so most horses are likely to find a movie set or travelling to a new location stressful. The most up-to-date <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/10/10/1870/htm">understanding of welfare</a> tells us that stress and poor mental health means poor animal welfare.</p> <p>When a horse is stressed or in pain they <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0168159117300692">behave in a very predictable way</a> – they run away, panic, kick out or buck and rear.</p> <p>Yet, anecdotally and in the media, people seeing a horse behaving in this way often claim the horse is crazy, unpredictable or just plain mean.</p> <p>More likely, an “unpredictable” horse is suffering from poor welfare.</p> <p>As part of our research program, we have developed a <a href="https://hub.rspca.org.au/attachments/88">new framework</a> to help horse owners identify aspects of their care and training that diminish horse welfare.</p> <p>This information can be used to make modifications to improve horse welfare, and, importantly, can be applied to horses in any equine sector, including racing, sport and film and television.</p> <h2>Investing in the future of horses in entertainment and sport</h2> <p>Although a veterinarian assessed the recent horse death on the set of The Rings of Power as “unlikely to be associated with the horse’s participation in the film”, more can be done to protect horses and the industry.</p> <p>In Australia, <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/7/1986">no specific standard exists for the use of animals</a> in filmed media, and each state and territory has differing risk management guidelines.</p> <p>An opportunity now exists for the industry to set a new standard for horse care and training.</p> <p>An easily executable first step for the industry could be to insist a scientifically trained and credentialed equine behaviour expert be involved in the recruitment and supervision of horse actors and their trainers at all stages of production.</p> <p>This would ensure horse actors are appropriately trained to be on set and that horses are trained using the most up-to-date ethical methods.</p> <p>Horse behaviour experts could also help in scene design to minimise horses’ exposure to stressful situations and identify tasks that are incompatible with good horse welfare.</p> <p>If these suggestions were to be adopted, the film and television industry would be setting the benchmark for horse welfare – and pressure other horse industries to follow suit.</p> <p><em>This article originally appeared on <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-horse-died-on-the-set-of-the-rings-of-power-more-needs-to-be-done-to-ensure-the-welfare-of-horses-used-in-entertainment-202939" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a>.</em></p> <p><em>Images: The Rings of Power / Amazon</em></p>

TV

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Major boost to pension and allowance just days away

<p>The federal government has announced big changes to government allowance, with nearly 5 million Aussies set to benefit from an increase to their pension payments. Read more:</p> <p>Almost 5 million Aussies will receive a major increase to their pension payments as they are indexed to inflation.</p> <p>Recipients of the Age Pension, Disability Support Pension and Carer Payment can expect an increase of $37.50 a fortnight for singles and $56.40 a fortnight for couples combined.</p> <p>The maximum fortnightly rate of the pension is set to increase to $1,064 for singles and $1,604 for couples,  including the pension and energy supplements.</p> <p>Single, childless JobSeeker and ABSTUDY recipients over 22 will receive an extra $24.70 per fortnight.</p> <p>Each half of a couple receiving payments will receive a $22.50 increase per fortnight.</p> <p>Single parents receiving the parenting payment will benefit from an extra $33.90 a fortnight.</p> <p>Single parents on the parenting payment will also receive an additional $33.90 per fortnight, with the rate increasing to $967.90, including the Pension Supplement, Energy Supplement, and Pharmaceutical Allowance.</p> <p>Single, childless recipients of the maximum rate Common Rent Assistance will see an increase of $5.60, receiving $157.20 per fortnight.</p> <p>People who receive the maximum rate and have one or two children will see an increase of $6.58 to $184.94 per fortnight, while those with three or more children will receive an increase of $7.42 to $208.74 per fortnight.</p> <p>According to the federal government, the indexation of social security payments will bring cost-of-living relief for 4.7 million people.</p> <p>Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth said the government was supporting Australians most in need.</p> <p>"Australia's social security system exists to support our most vulnerable citizens, and we know they are feeling the pinch," she said.</p> <p>"Indexation is a pillar of our social security system and we want more money in the pockets of everyday Australians so they can better afford essentials.</p> <p>"The increase is an important part of the system and helps those doing it toughest.”</p> <p>The indexation of payments begins on March 20.</p> <p><em>Image credit: Getty</em></p>

Money & Banking

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"You have to beg for help": how our welfare system pressures people to perform vulnerability

<p>People who rely on welfare payments to survive are often required to repeatedly tell stories of their personal hardships.</p> <p>In a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/jun/07/job-seekers-could-have-welfare-stopped-under-onerous-new-points-based-system-advocates-warn">conditional welfare system</a>, many must regularly attend compulsory appointments, job search training courses, and self-development and treatment programs simply to receive their payments.</p> <p>People in extreme hardship often tell their stories even more frequently as they seek extra relief from non-government charities and community providers.</p> <p>Those on income support payments below the relative poverty line feel the crunch of <a href="https://www.ncoss.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/NCOSS_CostOfLiving22_FINAL_DESIGNED.pdf">inflation and rising living costs</a> most severely. This means many will require extra support from welfare services to meet their basic needs.</p> <p>Integral to this system is the idea of “performing vulnerability”.</p> <p>“Performing vulnerability” – a term I borrow from UK-based researcher <a href="https://policy.bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/vulnerability-and-young-people">Kate Brown</a> to update Australian academic <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/lowest-rung/FA159318C2D046EDD3C9347C8B8E4F2E">Mark Peel’s</a> idea of “performing poverty” – is not just about repeatedly describing personal hardship. </p> <p>It points to the expectation to describe hardship in particular ways that are recognisable – and hence believable – to support providers.</p> <p>My book, <a href="https://policy.bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/making-a-life-on-mean-welfare">Making a Life on Mean Welfare: Voices from Multicultural Sydney </a>shows how the expectation to perform vulnerability to access support shapes experiences on both sides of the welfare frontline. </p> <p>It can compound the cycle of disadvantage associated with receiving welfare in the long term. It does so by <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0038026119876775">fostering mistrust</a> between welfare users and providers, as well as tainting how people in need of support see themselves and their situation.</p> <h2>‘Tell me your story’</h2> <p>For my doctoral research, I spent 18 months speaking to welfare users and workers in culturally and linguistically diverse southwest Sydney. I also observed different aspects of service delivery while volunteering at a community welfare organisation. I interviewed 25 welfare users and 11 community welfare practitioners.</p> <p>As a researcher of everyday experiences of welfare and poverty, I know all too well what it is like to ask people to tell their stories of hardship yet again.</p> <p>I also grew up in an impoverished family reliant on welfare to get by. I know firsthand what the impact of retelling stories of hardship can be, particularly when the audience is, as Peel <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/lowest-rung/FA159318C2D046EDD3C9347C8B8E4F2E">puts</a> it, “someone who has the power to give or deny them something they need”.</p> <p>One of the community welfare practitioners I interviewed summed it up by saying: "They’re coming again feeling ashamed. They’ve knocked on someone’s door, to tell yet again how shitty their situation is."</p> <p>Her response was to chat and put them at ease before saying, “Can you tell me your story?” She would follow up by saying, “You’ve given me some insight, let’s formalise your story a little bit.”</p> <p>Some welfare workers showed more scepticism, particularly when it came to giving out emergency relief. </p> <p>When someone refused to share more than the minimum information required to be eligible for extra assistance, one welfare worker commented: "That person doesn’t want to take responsibility."</p> <p>Another practitioner told me, “That woman dramatised her situation,” but quickly added, “That doesn’t mean she wasn’t genuine.”</p> <p>The willingness of people seeking assistance to disclose personal hardships and do so convincingly impacts on how deserving they may come across to those delivering support. The pressure to perform can overshadow encounters between welfare users and workers even when it doesn’t determine the outcome.</p> <h2>‘It’s your dignity’</h2> <p>Among the most marginal welfare recipients I spoke to, “performing vulnerability” was another toll of poverty.</p> <p>Those experiencing the worst hardship frequently told me about having to explain “the ins and outs” and feeling “embarrassed”, “intimidated” or “uncomfortable” when they had to present to welfare agencies.</p> <p>Two young people (whom I have given fictional names) powerfully conveyed the cost of telling all about their struggles:</p> <blockquote> <p>Kane: Often if you go to them sorts of people (welfare agencies) you’ve gotta put it all out there, that you’re homeless, that you got nothing, you got no friends, no family – and then they’re gonna go boom “alright” (you get the help you came for)…</p> <p>Nessa: Yeah, that’s what I had to do to get a house and it’s embarrassing (talking over each other) I think it’s embarrassing.</p> <p>Kane: You gotta go down to those levels you know – it’s wrong.</p> <p>Nessa: When you gotta expose everything and don’t want to, it’s, like, your dignity.</p> <p>Kane: Yeah, it’s everything.</p> </blockquote> <h2>Performing is not pretending</h2> <p>The most marginal welfare users get a great deal of practice performing their hardship. But knowing how to tell their story a certain way is not the same as pretending.</p> <p>Not only do people at the sharp end of the welfare system have to endure the hardships of poverty, but they must then recite it in a way that registers as genuine, pressing and beyond reprieve.</p> <p>As a woman living on the disability support pension put it:"You don’t have the flexibility that a rich person has to respond to crisis, so you have to beg for help. That takes time! And you know you’ll be judged like it’s your fault."</p> <p>A welfare system that demands disclosure of personal hardships – even when geared towards being <a href="https://onlinelibrary-wiley-com.ezproxy.uws.edu.au/doi/full/10.1111/1468-4446.12740">supportive</a> rather than suspicious – can undermine dignity and hold back those unwilling or unable to tell their story convincingly or in enough detail.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images </em></p> <p><em>This article originally appeared on <a href="https://theconversation.com/you-have-to-beg-for-help-how-our-welfare-system-pressures-people-to-perform-vulnerability-180975" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a>. </em></p>

Retirement Income

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Record boost to Centrelink payments coming for nearly one million Aussies

<p dir="ltr">Hundreds of thousands of Australians receiving welfare are due to receive the biggest increase to their payments in two decades.</p> <p dir="ltr">The increase will see payments for young people, including parents, students and those on disability, increase from January 1, 2023.</p> <p dir="ltr">From next year, the base rate for singles on Youth Allowance will increase by at least $19.10 - with a maximum $32.40 extra a fortnight - taking the maximum rate up to $569.80.</p> <p dir="ltr">Single Australians with dependents can expect a boost of $41.40, bringing payments up to $729.60, while couples will receive an additional $35.20 a fortnight.</p> <p dir="ltr">For those under 21 without kids who receive Disability Support Pension, including Youth Disability Supplement, the payment increase is expected to range between $27.40 and $40.70 a fortnight.</p> <p dir="ltr">Recipients of Austudy, ABSTUDY, Mobility Allowance, Double Orphan Pension, Carer Allowance and Pharmaceutical Allowance will also be included in the increases, which are part of a routine indexation that happens every January to keep up with inflation.</p> <p dir="ltr">It comes after the Reserve Bank of Australia forecasted that inflation would peak at eight percent by the end of 2022.</p> <p dir="ltr">In comparison, payments for young people and students have been indexed at 6.1 percent. </p> <p dir="ltr">Social services minister Amanda Rishworth said the increase would help ease the pressure coming from the current cost-of-living crisis.</p> <p dir="ltr">“With the cost of living increasing, we need to ensure students and young people can cover basic costs while focusing on their studies and career aspirations,” she said.</p> <p dir="ltr">While young people are the subject of these payment increases, those who receive Jobseeker or the Aged Pension won’t be left out, with indexation increases announced for all welfare payments were announced by the federal government in September.</p> <p dir="ltr">These payments are also indexed at other times of the year, with the Aged Pension increasing in March and September.</p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-4ef18bd0-7fff-9f99-b17c-fdf2ca04bab3"></span></p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Getty Images</em></p>

Money & Banking

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Man hides hefty lottery win from wife and child

<p dir="ltr">A Chinese man has kept his eye watering 219 million yuan (AUD$47,068,869) lottery win a secret from his wife and child so they don’t become lazy. </p> <p dir="ltr">Known only as Mr Li to conceal his identity, the man dressed up in a yellow cartoon costume when he accepted the huge win on October 24 at the lottery office in Nanning, in the southern region of Guangxi. </p> <p dir="ltr">“I did not tell my wife and child for fear that they would be too complacent and would not work or work hard in the future,” he told Nanning Evening News. </p> <p dir="ltr">Mr Li confessed that he bought 40 lottery tickets all of which had the same seven numbers, with the lottery company paying out 5.48 million yuan (AUD$1,177,811) for each ticket.</p> <p dir="ltr">Eventually he found out that he had the winning lottery numbers of 2, 15, 19, 26, 27, 29, and 2 and went to claim his prize.  </p> <p dir="ltr">After receiving the hefty sum, Mr Li donated 5 million yuan (AUD$1,074,597) to charity and is still unsure of what to do with his fortune.</p> <p dir="ltr">Mr Li has been playing the lottery for a decade and only won minor prizes until this time round.  </p> <p dir="ltr">“I regard buying the lottery as a hobby, and my family does not care. Plus, I do not spend much money on it, and the lottery provides a ray of hope for me,” he told the South China Morning Post. </p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Guangxi Welfare Lottery Centre</em></p>

Money & Banking

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Which Centrelink payments are going up from July 1

<p>From July the 1st, over 1.4 million Australian families will benefit from an increase to their Centrelink payments.</p> <p>The federal government has announced increases to the Family Tax Benefit (Part A and B) to keep up with the rising cost of living.</p> <p>Under the Family Tax Benefit Part A, payments for families with a child aged under 13 will increase up to $204.40 over 2022-2023.</p> <p>The payments will also increase by a maximum of $255.50 for families with a child 13 years and older.</p> <p>For those receiving Family Tax Benefit Part B, there will be an increase of as much as $164.25 per year where a family has their youngest child under 5.</p> <p>For those families on Family Tax Benefit Part B with a youngest child aged between five to eighteen will receive up to $116.80 more per year.</p> <p>The changes are expected to impact more than 1.4 million families, Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth said.</p> <p>It was also announced that the amount of income or assets an Age Pension, Disability Support Pension or Carer Payment recipient can have before their payment is affected will increase.</p> <p>“Social security and family payments have a built-in safeguard where they are automatically indexed at regular intervals to help them maintain purchasing power,” Rishworth said.</p> <p>Those who receive other family payments, such as Multiple Birth Allowance and Newborn Supplement are also set to receive an increase.</p> <p><em>Image: Getty</em></p>

Money & Banking

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Centrelink changes spark uproar

<p dir="ltr">A change to Centrelink that’s due to start next month has been described as “the Hunger Games crossed with Black Mirror” and has prompted concerns for what could happen for those not capable of meeting the new requirements for welfare payments.</p> <p dir="ltr">From July 1, the current system of mutual obligations, tasks, activities, job searches and interviews a person has to complete to receive their payments will be removed, with the points-based activation system (PBAS) taking its place, per <em><a href="https://www.news.com.au/finance/work/careers/uproar-over-new-pointsbased-system-for-welfare-recipients/news-story/150a60503a14f7a8559c249b5f60d242" target="_blank" rel="noopener">news.com.au</a></em>.</p> <p dir="ltr">Though some are happy to see the mutual obligations system come to an end, there are concerns about the problems the new PBAS - which requires recipients to earn 100 points and do at least five job searches a month - could bring.</p> <p dir="ltr">Welfare recipients can complete any of more than 30 tasks and activities from the system’s list, with each task carrying their own points value.</p> <p dir="ltr">Though programs like PaTH Internship, the National Work Experience Program, and Launch Into Work are worth 25 points - enough to reach 100 points in total - others like full-time Work for the Dole, the Adult Migrant English Program and Skills for Education and Employment are worth just 20 - requiring recipients to take on extra tasks to make up the remaining 20 points.</p> <p dir="ltr">Five points are also earned for every five hours of paid work, 20 are received for attending a job interview, and being part of the Defence Force Reserves can earn recipients 10 points, with relocating for a job being the only task worth the full 100 points.</p> <p dir="ltr">If individuals earn more than their monthly 100 points, up to 50 can be banked for the following month.</p> <p dir="ltr">However, welfare recipients have been warned their payments could be suspended and they could receive a demerit if their points target or job search minimum aren’t met.</p> <p dir="ltr">The Australian Unemployed Workers’ Union (AUWU) said the new system dialled mutual obligations “up to 11” and that it was “the Hunger Games crossed with Black Mirror”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Using technology to ‘gamify’ starvation points (score them or lose your payment) is morally offensive to basic human decency,” the organisation said in a statement.</p> <p dir="ltr">“This is not the design of a human welfare system - this is the design of a digital workhouse set up to brutalise people in desperate economic need and push them out of the system and onto the street.”</p> <p dir="ltr">With concerns raised about some people’s ability and capacity to meet these requirements, the Department of Education, Skills and Employment (DESE) has advised that these requirements could be reduced, the value of some tasks could increase, or additional activities could be created as an “activity bonus” based on personal circumstances.</p> <p dir="ltr">However, there is also confusion about how these changes - and which provider welfare recipients will be reporting to - will play out when it is introduced in less than a month, with the AUWU fearing another “robodebt-style disaster”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“The AUWU advocacy team is receiving a large number of reports from members telling su the system has not been properly explained to them,” advocacy coordinator Racquel Araya said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“We are trying to get a handle on this system so that we can advise those reaching out, and we still do not have clarity from the department on how exactly the reporting will work, how problems will be handled or resolved and whether Centrelink has the appropriate capacity to deal with the increased call centre inquiry volume.”</p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-167c7d7d-7fff-bb3f-73f5-bb3ceae7f2c2"></span></p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Getty Images</em></p>

Money & Banking

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Pay ‘with a smile or a wave’: Why Mastercard’s new face recognition payment system raises concerns

<p>Mastercard’s <a href="https://www.mastercard.com/news/press/2022/may/with-a-smile-or-a-wave-paying-in-store-just-got-personal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“smile to pay”</a> system, announced last week, is supposed to save time for customers at checkouts. It is being trialled in Brazil, with future pilots planned for the Middle East and Asia.</p> <p>The company argues touch-less technology will help speed up transaction times, shorten lines in shops, heighten security and improve hygiene in businesses. But it raises concerns relating to customer privacy, data storage, crime risk and bias.</p> <p><strong>How will it work?</strong></p> <p>Mastercard’s biometric checkout system will provide customers facial recognition-based payments, by linking the biometric authentication systems of a number of third-party companies with Mastercard’s own payment systems.</p> <p>A Mastercard spokesperson told The Conversation it had already partnered with NEC, Payface, Aurus, Fujitsu Limited, PopID and PayByFace, with more providers to be named.</p> <figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/464953/original/file-20220524-22-ga0v7l.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/464953/original/file-20220524-22-ga0v7l.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/464953/original/file-20220524-22-ga0v7l.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=400&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/464953/original/file-20220524-22-ga0v7l.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=400&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/464953/original/file-20220524-22-ga0v7l.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=400&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/464953/original/file-20220524-22-ga0v7l.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=503&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/464953/original/file-20220524-22-ga0v7l.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=503&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/464953/original/file-20220524-22-ga0v7l.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=503&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 2262w" alt="The 'Fujitsu' logo in red is displayed on a building's side" /></a><figcaption><em><span class="caption">Mastercard has partnered with Fujitsu, a massive information and communications technology firm offering many different products and services.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></em></figcaption></figure> <p>They said “providers need to go through independent laboratory certification against the program criteria to be considered” – but details of these criteria aren’t yet publicly available.</p> <p>According to <a href="https://www.siliconrepublic.com/business/mastercard-facial-recognition-biometric-payments" target="_blank" rel="noopener">media</a> reports, customers will have to install an app which will take their picture and payment information. This information will be saved and stored on the third-party provider’s servers.</p> <p>At the checkout, the customer’s face will be matched with the stored data. And once their identity is verified, funds will be deducted automatically. The “wave” option is a bit of a trick: as the customer watches the camera while waving, the camera still scans their face – not their hand.</p> <p>Similar authentication technologies are used on smartphones (face ID) and in many airports around the world, including “<a href="https://www.abf.gov.au/entering-and-leaving-australia/smartgates/arrivals" target="_blank" rel="noopener">smartgates</a>” in Australia.</p> <p><a href="https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/4/16251304/kfc-china-alipay-ant-financial-smile-to-pay" target="_blank" rel="noopener">China</a> started using biometrics-based checkout technology back in 2017. But Mastercard is among the first to launch such a system in Western markets – competing with the “pay with your palm” <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2020/09/29/amazon-introduces-the-amazon-one-a-way-to-pay-with-your-palm-when-entering-stores/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">system</a> used at cashier-less Amazon Go and Whole Foods brick and mortars in the United States.</p> <p><strong>What we don’t know</strong></p> <p>Much about the precise functioning of Mastercard’s system isn’t clear. How accurate will the facial recognition be? Who will have access to the databases of biometric data?</p> <p>A Mastercard spokesperson told The Conversation customers’ data would be stored with the relevant biometric service provider in encrypted form, and removed when the customer “indicates they want to end their enrolment”. But how will the removal of data be enforced if Mastercard itself can’t access it?</p> <p>Obviously, privacy protection is a major concern, especially when there are many potential third-party providers involved.</p> <p>On the bright side, Mastercard’s <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/articles/markets/032615/how-mastercard-makes-its-money-ma.asp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">customers</a> will have a choice as to whether or not they use the biometrics checkout system. However, it will be at retailers’ discretion whether they offer it, or whether they offer it exclusively as the only payment option.</p> <p>Similar face-recognition technologies used in airports, and <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/research/police-surveillance-and-facial-recognition-why-data-privacy-is-an-imperative-for-communities-of-color/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">by police</a>, often offer no choice.</p> <p>We can assume Mastercard and the biometrics provider with whom they partner will require customer consent, as per most privacy laws. But will customers know what they are consenting to?</p> <p>Ultimately, the biometric service providers Mastercard teams up with will decide how they use the data, for how long, where they store it, and who can access it. Mastercard will merely decide what providers are “good enough” to be accepted as partners, and the minimum standards they must adhere to.</p> <p>Customers who want the convenience of this checkout service will have to consent to all the related data and privacy terms. And as reports have noted, there is potential for Mastercard to integrate the feature with loyalty schemes and make personalised recommendations <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/05/17/mastercard-launches-tech-that-lets-you-pay-with-your-face-or-hand.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">based on purchases</a>.</p> <p><strong>Accuracy is a problem</strong></p> <p>While the accuracy of face recognition technologies has previously been challenged, the current <em>best</em> facial authentication algorithms have an error of just 0.08%, according to tests by the <a href="https://github.com/usnistgov/frvt/blob/nist-pages/reports/1N/frvt_1N_report_2020_03_27.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">National Institute of Standards and Technology</a>. In some countries, even banks have <a href="https://techhq.com/2020/09/biometrics-the-most-secure-solution-for-banking/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">become comfortable</a> relying on it to log users into their accounts.</p> <p>Yet we can’t know how accurate the technologies used in Mastercard’s biometric checkout system will be. The algorithms underpinning a technology can work almost perfectly when trailed in a lab, but perform <a href="https://www.csis.org/blogs/technology-policy-blog/how-accurate-are-facial-recognition-systems-%E2%80%93-and-why-does-it-matter" target="_blank" rel="noopener">poorly</a> in real life settings, where lighting, angles and other parameters are varied.</p> <p><strong>Bias is another problem</strong></p> <p>In a 2019 study, NIST <a href="https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/ir/2019/NIST.IR.8280.pdf#page=5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">found</a> that out of 189 facial recognition algorithms, the majority were biased. Specifically, they were less accurate on people from racial and ethnic minorities.</p> <p>Even if the technology has improved in the past few years, it’s not foolproof. And we don’t know the extent to which Mastercard’s system has overcome this challenge.</p> <p>If the software fails to recognise a customer at the check out, they might end up disappointed, or even become irate – which would completely undo any promise of speed or convenience.</p> <p>But if the technology misidentifies a person (for instance, John is recognised as Peter – or <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8-yupM-6Oc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">twins are confused</a> for each other), then money could be taken from the wrong person’s account. How would such a situation be dealt with?</p> <figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/464424/original/file-20220520-19-5hfuvx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/464424/original/file-20220520-19-5hfuvx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/464424/original/file-20220520-19-5hfuvx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=617&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/464424/original/file-20220520-19-5hfuvx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=617&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/464424/original/file-20220520-19-5hfuvx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=617&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/464424/original/file-20220520-19-5hfuvx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=776&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/464424/original/file-20220520-19-5hfuvx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=776&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/464424/original/file-20220520-19-5hfuvx.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=776&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 2262w" alt="" /></a><figcaption><em><span class="caption">There’s no evidence facial recognition technology is infallible. These systems can misidentify and also have biases.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></em></figcaption></figure> <p><strong>Is the technology secure?</strong></p> <p>We often hear about software and databases being hacked, even in <a href="https://www.csoonline.com/article/2130877/the-biggest-data-breaches-of-the-21st-century.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cases of</a> supposedly very “secure” organisations. Despite Mastercard’s <a href="https://wwmastw.cnbc.com/2022/05/17/mastercard-launches-tech-that-lets-you-pay-with-your-face-or-hand.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">efforts</a> to ensure security, there’s no guarantee the third-party providers’ databases – with potentially millions of people’s biometric data – won’t be hacked.</p> <p>In the wrong hands, this data could lead to <a href="https://www.comparitech.com/identity-theft-protection/identity-theft-statistics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">identity theft</a>, which is one of the fastest growing types of crime, and financial fraud.</p> <p><strong>Do we want it?</strong></p> <p>Mastercard suggests 74% of customers are in favour of using such technology, referencing a stat from its <a href="https://www.mastercard.com/news/ap/en/newsroom/press-releases/en/2020/april/mastercard-study-shows-consumers-moving-to-contactless-payments-for-everyday-purchases/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">own study</a> – also used by <a href="https://www.mastercard.com/news/ap/en/newsroom/press-releases/en/2020/october/mastercard-idemia-and-matchmove-pilot-fingerprint-biometric-card-in-asia-to-enhance-security-and-safety-of-contactless-payments" target="_blank" rel="noopener">business partner</a> Idemia (a company that sells biometric identification products).</p> <p>But the report cited is vague and brief. Other studies show entirely different results. For example, <a href="https://www.getapp.com/resources/facial-recognition-technology/#how-comfortable-are-consumers-with-facial-recognition-technology" target="_blank" rel="noopener">this study</a> suggests 69% of customers aren’t comfortable with face recognition tech being used in retail settings. And <a href="https://www.securitymagazine.com/articles/93521-are-consumers-comfortable-with-facial-recognition-it-depends-says-new-study" target="_blank" rel="noopener">this one</a> shows only 16% trust such tech.</p> <p>Also, if consumers knew the risks the technology poses, the number of those willing to use it might drop even lower.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/183447/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/rita-matulionyte-170113" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rita Matulionyte</a>, Senior Lecturer in Law, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/macquarie-university-1174" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Macquarie University</a></em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/pay-with-a-smile-or-a-wave-why-mastercards-new-face-recognition-payment-system-raises-concerns-183447" target="_blank" rel="noopener">original article</a>.</em></p> <p><em>Image: Getty Images</em></p>

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What a disaster: federal government slashes COVID payment when people need it most

<p>With Australia’s official COVID-19 infection numbers topping <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/world/australia-covid-cases.html">100,000 a day</a>, the federal government has slashed its last remaining pandemic support payment.</p> <p>The decision is ill-timed, irresponsible and heartless. It is stripping away support for those most affected by the pandemic at the time they need it most. It will place those in low paid and precarious work in further financial stress as they lose income to isolate when infected or in close contact with someone else with COVID-19.</p> <p>The Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment was introduced in August 2020 in response to concerns casual workers and others without sick or pandemic leave entitlements could not take time off work when infected or in contact with someone with COVID-19.</p> <p>The leave payment was initially available to those not qualifying for JobKeeper – or, after JobKeeper ended in March 2021, the “disaster payment” introduced in response to <a href="https://theconversation.com/support-package-for-sydney-better-and-more-fit-for-purpose-than-jobkeeper-164394">the Sydney lockdown</a> in July 2021. Since that payment ended the Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment is the only individual financial support the federal government provides.</p> <p>Available to people who had contracted COVID, were a close contact or needed to care for someone who had COVID, until this week it paid A$750 a week for two weeks. You could claim the payment regardless of the number of hours of paid work you lost.</p> <p>On January 18 the rules tightened – a move announced via a <a href="https://ministers.pmc.gov.au/mckenzie/2022/changes-pandemic-leave-disaster-payment">press release </a> on January 8 (a Saturday).</p> <p>Now it only pays $750 if you lose 20 hours or more of paid work a week. If you lose 8-19 hours you get just $450 a week. If you lose less than eight hours you get nothing.</p> <p>Getting the payment has also been made more difficult by imposing a 14-day time limit to apply, from the start of the isolation period. To qualify, you must show evidence of a positive PCR or rapid antigen test. Considering the difficulty of obtaining RATs, and delays in PCR test results <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/victoria/test-samples-no-longer-suitable-after-seven-day-wait-20220108-p59ms1.html">of a week or more</a>, this is a unreasonable and unnecessary constraint.</p> <h2>Flawed eligibility rules</h2> <p>A major flaw in the eligibility rules for the leave payment it is not available to people receiving social security payments. This excludes all JobSeeker recipients, despite about <a href="https://data.gov.au/data/dataset/dss-payment-demographic-data/resource/80cc89a3-3208-4e0d-9745-598f7a882e28">one in four</a> being in some form of paid work – generally low-paid casual jobs.</p> <p>The leave payment has been a vital part of the economic supports to help people stay safe and protect their loved ones and the community.</p> <p>The peak body for the community services sector, the Australian Council of Social Service, has <a href="https://www.acoss.org.au/media-releases/?media_release=another-income-hit-for-casual-workers-massive-cut-to-pandemic-leave-disaster-payment">condemned this decision</a>. It says cutting the payment will leave people without enough to cover basic costs, let alone the extra costs of isolation such as delivery fees, rapid tests (if you can get them) and personal protective equipment.</p> <h2>Worst time possible</h2> <p>There could scarcely be a worse time to cut this payment, with Australia now in the worst stage of the pandemic.</p> <p>Between August 5 2020 and July 8 2021 the Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment provided <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp2122/Quick_Guides/COVID-19DisasterPayments">almost 15,000 grants</a> to support those in need. During this period the peak COVID case rate was just over 500 day, in August 2020. Consider, therefore, the likely need now we’re at more than <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/world/australia-covid-cases.html">100,000 a day</a>.</p> <p>With no other form of federal income support available you may apply for an unemployment or sickness payment like JobSeeker. But Services Australia advises this will be paid about <a href="https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/when-youll-get-your-first-jobseeker-payment?context=51411">two weeks after</a> a claim is granted. That is of little help to cover rent while you’re isolating with COVID. JobSeeker is also a maximum of $315 a week – inadequate to cover basic costs.</p> <p>This cut will affect many of the same people <a href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/national/pm-announces-national-day-of-thanks-for-pandemic-heroes/news-story/174c8ccb94814aaa554d79eea0193e4f">lauded as the heroes of pandemic</a> – essential workers employed casually in health and aged care, supermarkets, hospitality venues and warehouses. It will also hurt temporary visa holders, who are entitled to the leave payment and do not qualify for any other federal income support.</p> <p>Last week <a href="https://www.acoss.org.au/media-releases/?media_release=community-sector-calls-for-collaboration-and-decisive-leadership-from-national-cabinet-to-deal-with-covid-debacle">ACOSS called for</a> the establishment of a civil society COVID Rapid Response Group to work alongside National Cabinet. We need the interests of people most at risk in the room at the highest levels when decisions like the future of the Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment are made.</p> <p>Cutting this payment now is effectively telling low-paid workers at the worst stage of the pandemic in Australia that they’re on their own.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/175146/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><span><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/cassandra-goldie-94635">Cassandra Goldie</a>, Adjunct Professor and UNSW Law Advisory Council Member, <em><a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/unsw-1414">UNSW</a></em></span></p> <p>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-a-disaster-federal-government-slashes-covid-payment-when-people-need-it-most-175146">original article</a>.</p> <p><em>Image: Mick Tsikas/AAP</em></p>

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Overhaul of payments system to cover digital wallets, buy now pay later, cryptocurrency

<p>Treasurer Josh Frydenberg will announce on Wednesday a comprehensive reform of regulations governing the payments system, to bring it up to date with innovations such as digital wallets and cryptocurrency.</p> <p>The government says without the changes – the biggest in 25 years – Australians businesses and consumers could increasingly be making transactions in spaces beyond the full reach of Australian law, where rules were determined by foreign governments and multinationals.</p> <p>It points out that in three decades payment methods have gone from cash to cheques, cheques to credit cards, credit cards to debit cards and now to “tap and go” via digital wallets on phones or watches.</p> <p>Around a decade ago, cryptocurrency was a concept. Currently, there are more than 220 million participants in the worldwide crypto market, including many in Australia.</p> <p>The planned reforms will centralise oversight of the payment system by ensuring government plays a greater leadership role. The treasurer will be given more power to intervene in certain circumstances.</p> <p>Consumer protection will be strengthened, and more competition and innovation will be promoted.</p> <p>The reform program will be in two phases. There will be consultations in the first half of next year on those that are most urgent and easy to implement. Consultations on the rest will be done by the end of the year.</p> <p>The government says the present one-size-fits-all licensing framework for payment service providers will be replaced graduated, risk-based regulatory requirements.</p> <p>There will be consideration of the feasibility of a retail central bank digital currency, and an examination of “de-banking” (where a bank declines to offer a service to a business or individual).</p> <p>Frydenberg says the comprehensive payments and crypto asset reform program would “firmly place Australia among a handful of lead countries in the world.</p> <p>"It is how we will capitalise on the opportunity for Australia to lead the world in this emerging and fast-growing area which has almost endless potential applications across the economy,” he says.</p> <p>“For businesses, these reforms will address the ambiguity that can exist about the regulatory and tax treatment of crypto assets and new payment methods.</p> <p>"In doing so, it will drive even more consumer interest, facilitate even more new entrants and enable even more innovation to take place.</p> <p>"For consumers, these changes will establish a regulatory framework to underpin their growing use of crypto assets and clarify the treatment of new payment methods.”<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/173331/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><span><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/michelle-grattan-20316">Michelle Grattan</a>, Professorial Fellow, <em><a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-canberra-865">University of Canberra</a></em></span></p> <p>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/overhaul-of-payments-system-to-cover-digital-wallets-buy-now-pay-later-cryptocurrency-173331">original article</a>.</p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p>

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"Cold and brutal": Karl grills treasurer over scrapping of disaster payments

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Today Show co-host Karl Stefanovic has criticised the federal government over its plan to scale back, and eventually scrap, COVID-19 disaster payments. It was announced on Tuesday that the government will begin winding down the payments, which give $750 a week to people who have lost at least 20 hours of work, and $450 a week to those who have lost between eight and 20 hours, as each state and territory reaches their 70 and 80 per cent vaccination targets.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Per the changes, once a state or territory reaches 70 per cent fully vaccinated, people will have to reapply each week for the payment, instead of it being automatically renewed. At 80 per cent, the payment will be phased out entirely within two weeks. For states and territories like NSW or the ACT, which are </span><a href="https://twitter.com/CaseyBriggs/status/1442700206420549636/photo/1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">estimated</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> to reach 80% fully vaccinated by October 18th and 21st respectively, this change means the scrapping of the payment is imminent. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Talking to treasurer Josh Frydenberg on the Today Show on Wednesday morning, co-host Karl Stefanovic called the decision “cold and brutal”, telling Frydenberg, “I get that you can’t keep it going and going but many industries won’t be back to normal at 70 or 80 per cent – you have the arts, nightclub, hospitality and tourism, especially in Far North Queensland … to cut them off is kind of cold and brutal, isn’t it?”</span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">“We can't continue with these emergency payments indefinitely.”<br /><br />The Federal Government will announce today that COVID disaster payments will be wound back as each state hits the 80 per cent double-dosed vaccination target. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/9Today?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#9Today</a> <a href="https://t.co/jHMFvZtDSH">pic.twitter.com/jHMFvZtDSH</a></p> — The Today Show (@TheTodayShow) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheTodayShow/status/1442976255402340363?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2021</a></blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In response, Frydenberg outlined the government’s partnership with the Queensland Government to support Queensland businesses, concluding that, “It’s those sorts of direct economic payments that complement what we’ve been doing at higher, broader level with the Covid disaster payment and other economic support.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Frydenberg failed to address how the federal government would provide support to those who have lost work as a result of COVID-19 and are not able to find replacement work in between now and the looming deadline. Many anti-poverty advocates and welfare campaigners expressed concern about the phasing out of the payments online, including the Antipoverty Centre, who tweeted, “They’re making a huge gamble with our lives, betting that jobs will magically return overnight.”</span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">The government has started the poverty clock ticking.<br /><br />They’re making a huge gamble with our lives, betting that jobs will magically return overnight. <br /><br />All that will come of this is more people in poverty and more lives destroyed. The disaster payment living up to its name. <a href="https://t.co/LtwzgMXotU">https://t.co/LtwzgMXotU</a></p> — The Antipoverty Centre (@antipovertycent) <a href="https://twitter.com/antipovertycent/status/1442856771341664264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 28, 2021</a></blockquote> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image: TODAY Show/Nine</span></em></p>

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