Salvos supporter claims charity ‘bullied’ her into taking petition down

She claims the man told her the petition had “ruffled too many feathers” and was hurting the brand of Perth Mayor Basil Zempilas and his wife Amy, who had a big following online.

Ms Chapples said he urged her to “cease and desist” the petition.

“He told me the petition was hindering talks between the Salvation Army and the City of Perth and was making Basil Zempilas look bad,” Ms Chapples said.

“It was a kick in the guts. Why would the Salvation Army want me to stop it? I just don’t understand.”

Ms Chapples said she felt bullied and the incident had left her shaken.

In identical statements sent to WAtoday, the Salvation Army and the City of Perth refuted the allegations, saying they were working in a close partnership to deliver services for homeless people.

“The Salvation Army and the City of Perth work in close partnership to deliver services to the homeless people within the City,” the statements read.

“Statements made by Lyndsey Chapples are refuted and not accurate.”

News of the mobile food service closure first made headlines in November, after it was revealed it had not been approved under a new accreditation process for organisations helping rough sleepers.

The process, introduced last year, has seen homeless services centralised in the city to Moore Street in a bureaucratic bid to create a “one-stop shop”, with multiple services operating out of the one location rather than across several areas where homeless people go.

A Salvation Army spokesman said the organisation had originally stopped the food service in February, only to start again at the request of the City of Perth because of the impact of COVID-19 on the homeless.

The charity is now in negotiations with the City of Perth to find an alternative service model but no agreement has been reached yet.

After putting the petition on hold for a couple of days, Ms Chapples said she intended to restart it.

“I’m doing it for the homeless,” she said. “They’ve been thrown to the kerb.”