Poverty for profit: Comparing the former Australian Coalition Federal Government's representations of Coronavirus Supplement and Cashless Debit Card recipients

This paper reports key findings of a critical discourse analysis (CDA) that compares the dominant constructions of both groups of welfare recipients. A total of 17 artefacts from the former ACFG press engagement were analysed. It should be noted that as of 6 March 2023, the Labor Federal Government replaced the CDC with the mostly voluntary SmartCard (remaining involuntary in the Northern Territory, as well as Cape York and Doomadgee in Queensland) (Department of Social Services (DSS) 2023). However, the findings of this study remain instructive, as they highlight hostile and anti-welfare recipient discourses that problematise individuals receiving social security payments evident in many Western Anglophone countries  and point to the importance of promoting critical literacy among policy makers, the helping professions, and society generally.