Rowan Ramsey (Grey, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Labor's actions yesterday in this chamber, in moving a bill for the abolition of the cashless debit card, had a broader and more sinister purpose—to establish a platform based on a lie to take to the next election. That the government will put aged pensioners on the cashless debit card is nothing but a despicable lie, and it needs to be called out. We never have, never will and have never intended to.

It is the 2016 'Mediscare' campaign lie all over again, which culminated in robocalls to senior Australians on the eve of the election, telling them that the coalition would scrap Medicare. It was a lie then, and it is a lie now. It scared these poor old people, these people who are the most vulnerable in our community, and it was designed to scare them. It was nothing more than the old Labor motto: 'At any cost, whatever it takes'. They were determined to win the election on a lie. Shame on them!

The bill's primary aim is to scrap the cashless debit card trials. The condescending Labor Party was at its worst. We had the member for Bruce, from south-east Melbourne, and the member for Richmond, which includes Byron Bay and Tweed Heads, telling the people of Ceduna, Kalgoorlie and Kununurra how to run their lives. Get out of their lives, and let them make their own decisions! (Time expired)