Liam Thatcher
LightNews LightNews
lthat.ch
Liam Thatcher
@lthat.ch
97 followers 390 following 15 posts
No relation. NDIS policy and supporting disability advocacy. Account is in personal capacity.

he/him
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
jeremypoxon.bsky.social
#BREAKING: The Commonwealth Ombudsman has published their investigation into the Targeted Compliance Framework & Mutual Obligations system

Their findings on the Department's administration of many parts of the system are incredibly damning 👇
Fairness in the Targeted Compliance Framework: when decisions are made beyond your control An investigation into the remediation of income support cancellations and oversight of decisions made by emmployment service providers affecting job seekers in the Targeted Compliance Framework DEWR’s approach to remediating the unlawful cancellation decisions is not fair or reasonable. • Providers give insufficient information to Services Australia to conduct capability assessments and mutual obligation failure investigations of job seekers. • Services Australia do not provide sufficient written explanation of penalty decisions to job seekers. • DEWR and Services Australia’s information for job seekers on how to seek a review or make a complaint lacks transparency, clarity and accessibility. • A high rate of provider decisions are overturned. Fairness in the TCF: when decisions are made beyond your control Page 7 of 89 • Automatic suspensions in the Penalty Zone undermine a job seeker’s ability to challenge penalties. • DEWR’s assessment of provider performance lacks transparency. • DEWR should continue to improve its oversight of providers, utilising their complaints mechanism. • Compliance activities against providers do not appear to align to the high number of overturned rates of provider decisions.
December 8, 2025 at 10:44 PM
lthat.ch
NDIA FOI account back online!

on about the 5th attempt I finally fixed the bug that stopped the service i was using to get notifications when the FOI log updated - see below for updates!
lthat.ch Liam Thatcher @lthat.ch · May 16
New mini project from me: I've set up @ndiafoi.bsky.social to post updates when a new document is released by the NDIA under freedom of information law.
December 4, 2025 at 12:57 PM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
jeremypoxon.bsky.social
Secretary defends job providers' use of payment suspensions, as she's "interrogated the system in a very active way"

So, she's asked about @antipovertycentre.org analysis, showing the system is threatening 5 payment suspensions a minute, & admits she didn't even check this data. Such interrogation!
December 3, 2025 at 6:16 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
atrubek.bsky.social
I havent read such a banger of an essay in a very long time. This is so well-written!
Maybe Don’t Talk to the New York Times About Zohran Mamdani
It’s remarkable, the people you’ll hear from. Teach for even a little while at an expensive institution—the term they tend to prefer is “elite”—and odds are that eventually someone who was a studen…
lithub.com
November 8, 2025 at 5:37 PM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
maximumwelfare.bsky.social
The Commonwealth argued in this hearing that the High Court appeal should not proceed, as the retrospective measures in the bill resolve any legal questions.

They may have had a point, had the bill been passed. I'm not sure it would have been a good one. In any event, the appeal will now be heard 🙂
Enacted and foreshadowed legislation limits the public importance of the matter 23 In its application, Legal Aid contends that the “public importance” of the proceeding for the purposes of s 35A(a)(i) of the Judiciary Act 1903 (Cth) lies in the significance of the interpretative question to a large cohort of social security debts calculated under affected provisions of the SSA: SLA[18]. 24 Two legislative developments mean that there is no such issue of public importance. 25 First, the Social Services and Other Legislation Amendment (Simplifying Income Reporting and Other Measures) Act 2020 (Cth) (2020 Amendment Act) carved employment income out of point 1067G-H23 (and similar provisions relating to social security payments other than Youth Allowance) and made fresh, specific provision for the allocation of employment income to instalment periods. The 2020 Amendment Act commenced on 7 December 2020. The issue of statutory construction in this proceeding only affected the calculation of social security entitlements by reference to employment income prior to that date. It is for this reason that the cohort of persons identified by LegalAid as affected by this proceeding are those with historic social security debts that arose prior to 7 December 2020: SLA[18]. 26 Secondly, the 2025 Bill would render the issues of statutory construction raised in Ground 2 of the special leave application irrelevant to the resolution of questions about historic entitlements under the SSA. That is because the Bill would provide that those questions are to be resolved by reference to the methodology for the allocation of employment income set out in proposed s 1117D of the SSA (Sch 1 of the Bill), rather than the provisions in issue in this proceeding: see proposed s 1117D(14). The proposed appeal raises issues of public importance 16. The Secretary has not shown that the proposed appeal lacks public importance. The 2025 Bill is not an Act and has no bearing on whether special leave should be granted. The courts “can only act upon the law as it is” and do not “speculate upon alterations in the law that may be made in the future”. The Secretary invites the Court to engage in that kind of speculation: see RS2 [17]. In any event, the Secretary has not explained how it is said the Bill (if enacted in its current form) would “determine” the issues raised by the proposed appeal: RSI [3]; RS2 [4]. Disposition 17. Special leave should be granted. If special leave is refused, there should be no order for costs (which the Secretary has not sought). Dated 18 September 2025 Kateena O’Gorman Laura Hilly Tim Farhall Glyn Ayres James Hogan Victoria Legal Aid Solicitors for the Applicant
November 7, 2025 at 3:30 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
antipovertycentre.org
Disability groups have released a statement: "We are deeply concerned that communities traditionally over-policed & disadvantaged, including First Nations people with disability, would be at heightened risk"

The whole statement is well worth reading.

Ty @amyremeikis.bsky.social for reporting.
Australia Institute Live — Daily Updates
Stay updated with the latest from The Australia Institute.
live.thepoint.com.au
November 6, 2025 at 3:15 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
antipovertycentre.org
Thank you @andrewwilkiemp.bsky.social and @senatorthorpe.bsky.social.

This is the most basic principle of what they call the "justice" system, and they want to strip it away with no scrutiny.
andrewwilkiemp.bsky.social Andrew Wilkie MP @andrewwilkiemp.bsky.social · Nov 3
Aus is supposed to be a country where the rule of law & natural justice applies. The Gov’s sneaky attempt to strip welfare from people before they’ve been convicted of any crime is a fundamental breach of these principles. We may as well dissolve the court system. #auspol #politas
November 4, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
bluntshovels.bsky.social
this piece is infuriating. disabled people are being paid a few dollars an hour - this has to change, yet the focus here is on well paid non-disabled people, pontificating about things that are not true.

brief 🧵
November 2, 2025 at 12:26 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
antipovertycentre.org
They say most suspensions are reversed, so what’s the harm?

But everyone who’s received that text message knows the harm starts there. Anxiety, stress, wasted time & energy. It starts even before that – submitting to mistreatment just to avoid the text.

Ty @caitkelly.bsky.social for reporting.
November 1, 2025 at 10:15 PM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
australia.theguardian.com
State disability ministers threaten Butler with boycott over two-minute speaking limit in NDIS meeting
State disability ministers threaten Butler with boycott over two-minute speaking limit in NDIS meeting
State and territory ministers say they will reconsider their attendance to the meeting next Friday if they get at least 10 minutes each State and territory disability ministers have threatened to boycott an upcoming NDIS meeting with the Albanese government after being given just two minutes to contribute to discussions. In a joint letter from all jurisdictions sent on Thursday to the health and disability minister, Mark Butler, and NDIS minister, Jenny McAllister, ministers warned they were “no longer able to confirm” their attendance at the meeting next Friday unless given the opportunity to “meaningfully contribute”. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
October 30, 2025 at 7:54 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
kristin8x.antipovertycentre.org
Priorities.
How is anyone surviving solely on the single parenting payment in Australia right now?! I’m a single Mum of 2 children aged 5 and 2. I pay $430 per week in rent which mind you is cheap for my area, around $70 per week in childcare. My groceries are usually $300+ to last my kids and I and I’m barely surviving. I often go days without food for myself, I barely scrape by. I’m constantly behind in bills. And I’m struggling to gain employment on top of all this due to being a stay at home Mum for a few years now, no one will give me a chance. I’ve tried applying for loans of even $100 when I’ve been struggling for food and I get declined due to my only income being Centrelink, which I think is ridiculous! If I had other forms of income besides Centrelink I wouldn’t be needing to try do loans. As well as I have had to do 2 “ urgent payments” this year through Centrelink to get by and I think it’s insane you have to wait another whole year before you can do an urgent payment. Sorry to rant, I’m just so frustrated and feel really stuck.
October 30, 2025 at 8:52 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
nobodyinpoverty.bsky.social
Civil society groups call on gov to abandon police power to stop Centrelink payments without proper judicial process

Statement from:
@ausunemployment.auwu.org.au
@antipovertycentre.org @maximumwelfare.bsky.social Anglicare and Single Mother Families Australia

open.substack.com/pub/apcentre...
If Labor wants to tinker with the social security system, they should increase payments above the poverty line, which will serve to help victims of these crimes a whole lot more than convoluted and potentially unlawful ways to cancel people’s payments.”
October 30, 2025 at 5:19 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
emmfoolery.bsky.social
DOS archaeology ain't much, but it's honest work.
A screenshot of the I Hate Collingwood Wolf3D mod. I managed to track down some of the files and I'm trying to wrangle it together.
October 26, 2025 at 2:52 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
antipovertycentre.org
🚨 PSA FOR FOLKS IN DISABILITY EMPLOYMENT SERVICES

"Mutual" obligations are VOLUNTARY from today until 6 Jan 2025. There are no payment suspensions, demerits, or other penalties during the transition to Inclusive Employment Australia.

If your provider isn't helpful, you can ignore them completely.
Government Announces Pause on Mutual Obligations for Inclusive Employment Australia - Disability Advocacy Network Australia
The Department of Employment and Workplace Relations announced last week that they will be pausing mutual obligations for the rollout of the new Inclusive Employment Australia (IEA) program from the 1...
dana.org.au
October 16, 2025 at 6:40 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
jeremypoxon.bsky.social
Now that the Deloitte report, about the government's unlawful administration of mutual obligations, is making international headlines, it's worth looking at what's actually in it (apart from AI slop) and WHY it was actually commissioned

A thread👇
October 9, 2025 at 1:57 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
nobodyinpoverty.bsky.social
Workforce Australia deleted their X, so I'm bringing you the reminder that Mutual Obligations are suspended from Thursday 16 October 2025 until Monday 5 January 2026 (inclusive) for Inclusive Employment Australia (Formerly DES) participants.

www.facebook.com/photo.php?fb...
The image shows the Australian Government crest and the Workforce Australia logo at the top against a dark blue background. In the center is a large, light-blue location pin icon. Below the icon, the text reads: Mutual obligation pause for Disability Employment Service (DES) participants. Please check post
October 9, 2025 at 2:29 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
nobodyinpoverty.bsky.social
What compensation could ever be fair for being imprisoned over a false debt?
At least two people were jailed after Centrelink used unlawful calculations to accuse them of overclaiming welfare benefits

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...
25m ago 11.28 AEST Cait Kelly Cait Kelly Senate committee discussing decision to offer compensation to those affected by unlawful debt calculations Today, the Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee is discussing the government’s decision to offer around $3m to Australians affected by Centrelink’s unlawful debt calculation method. People with unlawful debts between $250 and $2,000 will receive $200, those between $2,000 and $5,000 will receive $400, and debts above $5,000 will receive $600. The government would also raise the threshold for small debts to $250, meaning about 1.2 million debts are expected to be waived or not raised this financial year. Kristin O’Connell, a spokesperson for advocacy group the Antipoverty Centre, said all the debts should be completely waived: I mentioned someone in my opening statement who’s been criminalised and he’s been incarcerated as a result of one of these debts. There is no amount of money that can make up for the harm done to that person. But under this scheme, if he is deemed to be able to get that compensation, it will be $600 and his debt is in the tens of thousands of dollars. He’s been living with the consequences of criminalisation now since 2018. At least two people were jailed after Centrelink used unlawful calculations to accuse them of overclaiming welfare benefits, a watchdog has revealed.
October 3, 2025 at 1:57 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
discoelysiumbot.bsky.social
“I enjoy thinking about truly fundamental concepts, like the alphabet for instance.”
September 30, 2025 at 6:44 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
maximumwelfare.bsky.social
Good morning.
australia.theguardian.com Guardian Australia @australia.theguardian.com · Sep 25
More than 300,000 Australians had Centrelink payments cancelled illegally, new analysis shows
More than 300,000 Australians had Centrelink payments cancelled illegally, new analysis shows
Peak body for community legal centres finds number of payments suspended due to IT glitch higher than department initially identified * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Hundreds of thousands of Centrelink payments were illegally cancelled because of a glitch in the automated system that runs the government’s controversial mutual obligations scheme, the peak body for community legal centres has said. The analysis from Economic Justice Australia shows about 310,000 people had their Centrelink payments unlawfully cancelled between 2020 and 2024 because they were not given enough time to reconnect to a job provider after missing a compulsory activity as part of their mutual obligations. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
September 25, 2025 at 8:26 PM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
lenoret.bsky.social
The federal government spent more than $60m on private law firms to fight national disability insurance scheme participants appealing decisions about their packages last financial year, a 60% increase from the year before, Guardian Australia can reveal.

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...
‘They’ve engaged a barrister!’ Parents of high-needs children say Labor is waging lawfare over disability support
Exclusive: The federal government paid big law firms more than $60m in 2024-25 to fight NDIS participants appealing decisions about their care packages. Most families represent themselves
www.theguardian.com
September 23, 2025 at 9:27 PM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
keezyyoung.bsky.social
you should read the whole article (i want to also read the book!) but i want to highlight this first question, because so often you hear that solitary is bad, BUT it's a necessary way to protect the vulnerable (whether bc queer or mentally ill or something else). that's not true. it is never that
In your experience, was solitary doled out to protect people from the person in solitary or to punish the person in solitary?‪ –@highlandsurfer‬ on BlueSky Christopher Blackwell: No matter how you look at solitary, it can ONLY be viewed as punishment. I say that because solitary is a form of torture. To put a person in a box without human contact does nothing to keep them or others safe—it only prolongs future harm. It does nothing to address the reasons why they were harming people in the first place. Solitary is always to punish through abuse and oppression. But no one stays in solitary forever, just like over 90 percent of people are eventually released from prison. What’s it going to look like when that person gets out after weeks or months of even years of torture? They’re probably going to keep harming others. Kwaneta Harris: It’s punishment, plain and simple. Don’t let them fool you with that “administrative segregation” language. It’s designed to break you down. I’ve seen women thrown into solitary for refusing a guard’s sexual advances, for filing grievances about medical neglect, for being gay or trans and not conforming to the administration’s idea of femininity. I watched them put a woman in the hole for 2 years because she asked for a kosher meal she was legally entitled to. Another woman got solitary for “threatening” behavior. What she did was tell a guard she was going to file a complaint with the warden about being denied her heart medication. The system uses isolation as its ultimate weapon of control, and they wield it against anyone who dares to maintain their dignity or fight for basic human rights.
September 19, 2025 at 8:17 PM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
maximumwelfare.bsky.social
They are calling it one of the most lawful systems of welfare administration of all time:
Job Search Unsatisfactory Details Job Plan Code: [this part of the form is blank] Job Search Reporting Start Date: 10/03/2022 Job Search Reporting End Date: 9/04/2022 Number of Job Searches required this period: 20 Number of Job Searches submitted at end of period: 0 Evidences Activity Referral Evidences *** No evidences of this type exist for this Non Compliance Event *** Provider Appointment Evidences *** No evidences of this type exist for this Non Compliance Event *** Job Seeker Comment Evidences *** No evidences of this type exist for this Non Compliance Event *** Job Seeker Requirement Evidences *** No evidences of this type exist for this Non Compliance Event *** Job Plan Activity Evidences *** No evidences of this type exist for this Non Compliance Event *** Job Plan Assistance Evidences *** No evidences of this type exist for this Non Compliance Event ***
September 15, 2025 at 7:24 AM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
headfallsoff.com
i reviewed NBA 2K26 for @endlessmode.bsky.social because someone had to while you're all playing silksong: www.endlessmode.com/article/comm...
September 5, 2025 at 4:03 PM
Reposted by Liam Thatcher
cormacmccafe.bsky.social
i wrote about who's really rorting the NDIS for @crikey_news

www.crikey.com.au/2025/08/29/n...
People are using autism to rort the NDIS, but it’s not the people with autism
As a support worker (an autistic one to boot), I've had a ground’s-eye view of an industry with little to no oversight — one where government policy has had the marrow sucked out of it by a vicious ci...
www.crikey.com.au
September 3, 2025 at 6:42 AM