So, it's OK to hand out money and free kicks to non-religious businesses, with highly paid CEOs and costly employees posing as charities, but not right for church/faith organisations who actually help real people in need with much less fuss and nowhere near the same cost.

Oh dear...yawn.

While our poor cousins in Queensland unravel over fifty grand Government grant to charity, further south in the city mouses parlour, our Glady in NSW, furthered the land developers paradise by installing land tax exemptions and exemptions on foreign investment oversights, promoting a further dogs breakfast for themselves in the inner city, building renter units under the pretext, it's all good for renters in the long run.

Of course the group of renters catered for, are the broad spectrum of renters that can't quite yet afford a three million dollar appartments. All of those "worthy" citizens can now enjoy special privileges of the new "scheme"...read "scam", at taxpayer expense, while they save their pennies for a future filled with expensive real estate ownership.

It is really difficult for the plebeians to take sides in politics.

Dan

Well I live in the Redlands, and I have family members who are Christians, one of which did unpaid work for the dole at 'The Cage', and helped build the church they now want moved.

I asked what they thought.

The first said he doesn't support the $50,000 grant.
He said churches who receive government money as charity status have signed onto the PC agenda (tolerance of gays etc) and aren't really promoting what the church is supposed to.

Also he agreed that if you give them that money, then there's nothing stopping the next Mosque being built up the road wanting there 50K too.

I spoke to the second one who had spent a few weeks there.
He doesn't support the $50,000 grant and said they get enough benefits already.
He said the guy the runs the place 'Pete' is not a particularly nice person, but that his wife is a lovely lady.
He said he thinks this man has the wrong attitude about things.
That he isn't doing the things he does for the glory of God or to help the people he claims to be helping, for his own glory and to improve his own life.

He told me that it was free work for the dole help that built the church hall already, that they also get council contracts and use work for the dole people to do that work.
That people come to do work for the dole and if there are too many he sends them away.

He said he acts like the free work he gets from unpaid workers is an entitlement, and that he breaches and bullies these people if he thinks they have the wrong attitude.

[Cont.]

For example:
He would ask how everyone is, if they are happy to be there, and if someone said no, I'd rather being doing paid work, then he says they have the wrong attitude and breaches them with Centrelink for their work for the dole obligations.
Indeed my family member saw numerous heated incidents between unpaid workers and 'Pete' because he had the wrong attitude and frequently rubs people the wrong way.
He said that many of the people there doing unpaid work have health or other problems in their life and that his attitude only makes many of these peoples problems worse for no necessary reason.

Despite this he said they do a lot of good things, child minding etc.

I have to agree with Don Brown, right now in Victoria point, the roads are a genuine issue especially the schools local to where 'The Cage' is.
The single lane road each way going past Victoria Point State High School has needed upgrading to 2 lanes each way for years and is getting really congested during school times.
To add to that you've got the intersections of Anita St and Double Jump Road that also desperately need upgrading.

If the Cage were spending the money towards community things my position might be different, but I don't support money to move their church which was already built by work for the dole people, and which ONLY benefits members of their religion, not the entire community.

I don't think taxpayers money should be building churches mosques or temples, but going towards programs that help the greater community are ok.

So that's 3 out of 3 locals say NO, 2 of them being Christians themselves.
I will ask others what they think as well.
Many thanks for your article.

So, it's a church is it? And never ever has paid tax? Was built by work for the dole scheme?

And because one pollie decides to question poposed funding? The LNP thinks there is an electoral adantage in challenging accountability?

Thanks for the update A.C. and some daylight shone on these dodgy claims.

For heaven's sake, the LNP can find enough real stuff to lay at Labor's door, without needing invent stuff or bogus outrage?
Alan B.

yep the god deniers complaining about an organisation that helps people into work and keeps them out of gaol. Wow all for 50000. Well I suppose they can set up some more injecting rooms, build more gaols and hire more police. The sort of economics the god haters use especially when programs that work show up the godless ones that don't. Seen it a few times. Put a rainbow badge on and you will be assured funding.