Billionaire takes aim at Greens

Forrest in ‘party for pedophiles’ rant

BILLIONAIRE Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest has labelled the Greens “the party for pedophiles” for failing to support a cashless debit card for welfare recipients.

Mr Forrest has long supported such a card, believing it would stop welfare payments being spent on drugs and alcohol.

This week he travelled to Canberra to show Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten CCTV footage of unconscious children being assaulted.

The Greens refused to attend the screening for reasons Mr Forrest dubbed “human rights horses**t”.

“I have to hold the Greens accountable here; the Greens might as well be the party for pedophiles, the party for child sex abusers – you’re the party of human rights and you’ve forgotten the human rights of children,” he said, according to Fairfax Media.

“While we play politics – Bill Shorten, Malcolm Turnbull, the crossbenches – kids are dying and the instant someone plays politics, you literally consign another life to being molested, to being abused, to being kept from school, or worse, committing suicide.

“I’m asking the Prime Minister and the leader of the Opposition to put wedge politics aside and come out and strongly back the little children in vulnerable communities, because quite literally, while Australia dithers on this, children are dying.”

The cashless welfare card is being trialled at two sites – East Kimberley and Ceduna.

The government has announced plans to expand the trial to two more sites.

The trial has shown a reduction in alcohol and drug abuse and some homelessness but about half of the participants say the card made their lives worse.

Greens senator Rachel Siewert dismissed Mr Forrest’s comments.

“Andrew Forrest tends to run bizarre commentary against people who do not agree with his ideas and this is just another example,” she said.