is there much point in asking the cowgirl anything?
There’s no limit to stupidity
“The Robodebt scheme in Australia caused some victims to commit suicide due to the immense stress and despair it inflicted on them. The royal commission's report clearly states this:
"What is certain is that the scheme was responsible for heartbreak and harm to family members of those who took their own lives because of the despair the scheme caused them."[1][2]
It specifically mentions at least three suicides linked to Robodebt notices:
1) Rhys Cauzzo, 28 years old, whose mother testified that the aggressive payment demands from debt collectors contributed to his suicide.[3]
2) Jarrad Madgwick, 22 years old, whose mother Kath Madgwick told the BBC she holds the government partially responsible for his suicide due to the Robodebt scheme.[4]
3) Another unnamed tragic death in 2017 that "appears to have resulted from a discrepancy letter issued under the Scheme."[1]
The report notes that while Services Australia could not provide exact suicide figures, "it does little for the families of those who have died to speak of their loss in terms of numbers."[1] Victims also gave testimony about feeling suicidal and experiencing severe anxiety and depression from receiving the false debt notices.[4]
So in summary, while the precise number is unclear, the royal commission confirmed that the unlawful and flawed Robodebt scheme directly caused multiple suicides among its victims due to the immense psychological distress it created.[1][2][4]
