The independent evaluation of the federal government’s cashless welfare card trial found almost half of participants felt it had made their lives worse.

The evaluation, led by Orima research, was also unable to determine where the trial had succeeded and failed, and found only limited evidence of any impact on crime rates.

'Ration days again': cashless welfare card ignites shame Read more

However the social services minister, Alan Tudge, who released the report on Tuesday, said “strong independent evaluation results” had shown the trial was effective in reducing alcohol consumption, illegal drug use and gambling.

The report was based on data and interviews collected during the first six months of the trial and found perceptions of the trial varied between community members and those on the card.



The 12-month trial began in South Australia’s Ceduna on 15 March 2016 and in the Western Australian towns of Kununurra and Wyndham on 26 April, with welfare recipients receiving 80% of their payments on a restricted debit card. It cannot be used to withdraw cash or buy alcohol or gambling products. The remaining 20% is available in cash.

Of those on the welfare card interviewed for the evaluation, 49% said it had made their lives worse, while 22% said it had made their lives better. Of family members of those on the trial, 37% said it had made their lives worse, while 27% said it had made their lives better.

One quarter of participants and 13% of their family members reported drinking less alcohol since the trial began. While numerous support services were rolled out alongside the trial, such as sobering up and drug addiction services, the report found uptake of these services had not increased and therefore a reduction in drinking and drug use could be put down to being on the card.

“The trial sites are complex communities,” the report found. “This trial is not an experimental design that allows the isolation of the different strategies, or where the specific effects of the cashless debit card concept can be unequivocally identified.

“However, on the face of it, the positive short-term impacts since the trial commenced in relation to alcohol consumption, illegal drug use and gambling appear likely to be attributable to the cashless debit card trial.”

Coalition 'cherry picking' data to support cashless welfare card trial Read more

Tudge has decided to extend the trial in Ceduna and in the East Kimberley of Western Australia for 12 months off the back of the report, due to what he described as “strong independent evaluation results”.

“Overall, the [trial] has been effective to date … in particular the trial has been effective in reducing alcohol consumption, illegal drug use and gambling – establishing a clear ‘proof-of-concept’.”



The Cashless Debit Card aims to reduce the devastating effects of welfare-fuelled alcohol, drug and gambling abuse. Over time it is hoped the card will help people to break the cycle of welfare dependency by stabilising their lives and helping them into employment.

The report found “most stakeholders felt that excessive alcohol consumption was at a ‘crisis point’ and was having wide-ranging negative impacts on individuals, their families and the community.”

Tudge cited evidence from the report that 32% of participants and 15% of family members reported gambling less, while 24% reported using illegal drugs less often.

A significant proportion (31%) of the participants surveyed indicated they had been better able to care for children and save more money.

Tudge did not respond to requests from Guardian Australia for interview but has been taking selected journalist to the trial sites for tours throughout the course of the trial. In a statement, he said that over time he believed the card would help make the trial communities “safe, healthy and prosperous once again”.

“The card is a not a panacea,” he said. “But it has led to stark improvements in these communities. There are very few other initiatives that have had such impact.

“A large part of the success has been the close working relationship with local leaders, who have co-designed and implemented the trial with us. The South Australian and Western Australian state governments have also been very supportive.”

But a respected elder in the South Australian remote community of Yalata, Mima Smart, who was awarded awarded an Order of Australia Medal for her work with Aboriginal people in her community, was shocked to learn the trial had been extended. Yalata is included in the Ceduna trial.

“This is not good enough,” Smart said. “Cancel it. Think about the people that are suffering and the young people on it, who don’t understand how to fill out the paperwork.”

Smart was one of the elders who signed up to the trial on behalf of her community. But she says she was misled about how the trial would work. “I thought when it was first talked about in the past, I thought it was going to be for the main people that hang out in Ceduna drinking and causing trouble, and not the people living in Ceduna who don’t drink and get into trouble.

“I didn’t think it would be for the people who do look after their kids. I thought the cashless card would be targeted.”

She said the results from the evaluation should have been presented to the community before being made public by Tudge. Some community leaders went to Canberra to discuss the card, she said, but she was not a part of those discussions.



“They didn’t come here and tell the community what was said,” Smart said. “The district council here and Tudge and all that mob are supposed to be going to the community so they can have their say. A lot of people in the community think Tudge is a no-good white man.”

Greens Senator Rachel Siewert said the evaluation report was largely based on perceptions and examined only the first few months of the trial. It should not be used to justify extending the trial, she said.

“Participants and their family members have also felt humbugging has gone up, I have expressed concerns that this would happen,” she said. Humbugging is the term used by community members to describe unreasonable financial demands being made on family members and members of the community.

“Community leaders admitted that people are getting around the card and finding ways to access cash but couldn’t comment on the scale, we heard of this happening and I suspect it will only get worse” Siewert said.

“We heard of one stakeholder stating that prostitution was taking place to circumvent the card, which is extremely concerning.”

Cashless welfare card treats Aboriginal people 'as third-class citizens' Read more

She added that not all of the most recent SA police statistics for the Ceduna area made it into the report, despite showing that in the past year aggravated robbery went up by 120% and fraud deception and related offences went up by 51%.

“Why was this not a key part of the report?” Siewert said. “It clearly shows a huge jump in robbery as well as other crimes. Instead the report brushes these stats aside, saying that break-ins were committed by juveniles and people from out of town.”

“People with drug and alcohol addiction will always find ways around income management, whilst others forced onto the card who have never had a problem with addiction will continue to struggle.

“I fear this [report] may be a stepping stone to a broader rollout later down the track”.