The state government has 'suspended' new applications for the Seniors Travel Card in what some are saying is the first step in it being axed altogether.
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Northern Tablelands MP Adam Marshall blasted the State Government in late June for refusing to allow any new applicants for the card, on the grounds it is being "misused by seniors".
Mr Marshall demanded the card be "urgently reinstated" and said "the government had a long-standing secret agenda to axe the card, however, they were playing pitiful politics by saying it was being used incorrectly."
"In the Northern Tablelands, this $250 cost-of-living relief card is popular and essential for more than 12,000 seniors to travel to medical appointments, purchase fuel and help get from a-to-b," Mr Marshall said.
He said it was "insulting, mean and juvenile" for Premier Chris Minns to suggest people were using the card buy cigarettes and junk food.
Mr Marshall said it's fine to have the department investigate, but "it is not okay to use this as a justification for giving the flick to a very popular and vital public policy initiative."
"The reality is all the seniors I have spoken to in our region are using the card properly and what it was intended for - and it's making a huge difference for those struggling with cost of living pressures," he said.
"With many of our local seniors already feeling the cost-of-living pinch, axing this travel card would represent a major blow at a time when our seniors need this assistance the most.
On June 15 Mr Marshall launched a petition to save the card from being axed in the September state budget.
"I am urging my community to sign a petition so that we can together campaign to get the card back up and running," Mr Marshall said.
"Across NSW, more than 1 million seniors currently access the Regional Seniors Travel Card.
"I hope that we can send a strong message to the government on Macquarie Street about how important and valuable this card is for seniors in rural and regional NSW."
Paper copies of the petition are available at Mr Marshall's Armidale and Moree Electorate Offices.
This article first appeared in The Northern Daily Leader.
