Bob Baldwin (Paterson, Liberal Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for the Environment) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Social Services Legislation Amendment (Youth Unemployment and other Measures) Bill of 2015. In a very practical sense, the measures proposed in this bill seek to introduce a revised, four-week waiting period for youth income support from 1 July 2016—1 July 2016, not 2015. This is a great outcome for those struggling with unemployment and, of course, for those suffering from its financial repercussions. It reintroduces key changes to indexation, to name a few. The best thing that anybody can do, that any government can ever do, for the young unemployed in this country is create jobs. The government understands that it is there to provide a safety net and a support network—not a lifestyle—and it is our determination to do that. I will come to more of those points in the bill as I progress.

I am very pleased to speak on this bill today because, as a government, we have a very, very clear road map of how we are going to address unemployment across our nation. I want to speak on this bill today with the reflection of my electorate of Paterson and how we as a government are seeking to address the challenge of under-employment and unemployment—unlike those opposite, who have no clear intention of addressing the issue whatsoever. All we hear from the opposition—and when they were in government—is rhetoric. No plans, no solutions and, in particular, no outcomes. Those opposite have only made illusory comments in their budget-in-reply speeches. They have only contributed to what is the issue of youth unemployment across our great nation. Unemployment in Paterson, as a general figure, is around 7.2 per cent. Youth unemployment is unacceptably high across our nation, with the current unemployment rate for young Australians aged 15 to 24 at around 13.4 per cent, as of May 2015. In the Hunter and mid-north coast regions in which my electorate of Paterson falls, the youth unemployment rate falls between 14 and 18.6 per cent; it is higher than the national average. It takes me back to the days when I first came into this House in 1996, when we had record unemployment; in particular, youth unemployment was getting up to around 30 per cent—such is the legacy that Labor tends to leave coalition governments to fix up. These are very, very sobering figures, but they are figures that we have accepted and are addressing in government.

We are addressing the issue of youth unemployment through a number of comprehensive packages over a number of portfolio areas. This is not one issue in isolation. This requires a whole-of-government approach. As a government, we are acutely aware of the need for employment and the benefit that it has for our economy. I am pleased that the 2015-16 budget has an incredibly strong focus on job seekers, especially young job seekers, to help them not only find employment but retain employment. One of the ways in which we have done this is through our Growing Jobs and Small Business package, which includes a wide range of measures to assist our young job seekers, like those in my electorate of Paterson, through programs, including the new $18 million National Work Experience program.

See this speech in context