Jill Hall (Shortland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to support the Social Security Legislation Amendment (Fair Incentives to Work) Bill 2012 but, in doing so, I congratulate the member for Pearce on her contribution to this debate. I do not think there is very much that she said that I disagree with. I know that she was a single parent herself. She understands the struggle that single parents confront each and every day. She understands the level of resilience needed and the impact that being a single parent has upon a person, and she knows that a single person needs and deserves support. Her contribution to this debate was outstanding, and I would like to associate myself with practically every comment that she made.

As I mentioned, I am rising to support this legislation but, in doing so, I must say that I have some serious concerns about it. I would like to thank Minister Shorten and Minister Ellis for the work that they have put into trying to allay some of my concerns and improving the legislation that we have before us today. But, for me, the bottom line is that single parents deserve every bit of support that they can get. Whilst this legislation is only removing a grandfathering clause and putting those people who are currently grandfathered under the Social Security Act in line with other single parents, to me it is putting another group of parents at risk, making it harder for them.

When this legislation was first mooted a number of single parents contacted me in my office. One stands out in my mind. She is not the type of woman who people like to stereotypically identify as a single parent; rather, she is a mum, with three children, who is working really hard part time to look after those children. Under this legislation, she will not be able to design her workload and caring responsibilities around her children. She will suffer a significant loss of income and, as such, she will be extremely disadvantaged. I do understand why this legislation has been introduced. I compliment the ministers involved, as I have already said, on the work that they are doing in making it easier for single parents to find work. But at the bottom of all this is the fact that Newstart allowance is inadequate. It makes it really hard for unemployed people to survive.

I would like to refer to an ACOSS report which identifies that $35 a day is not enough to live on. I would challenge a person to try to live on $35 a day. This report points out that unemployment can happen to anyone, just the same as becoming a single parent can happen to anyone. When somebody is having a child they do not immediately think, 'I'm going to be a single parent.' Very few people approach parenthood in that way but, when it happens, it is a struggle. The fact is that a person can be employed one day, earning a really good income, and the next day they can be unemployed. When they are unemployed they have to live on $35 a day.

I will refer again to this ACOSS report. It refers to budgeting on Newstart. I will run through this budget for the sake of the House. The budget for a week is: food and drink, $78; clothing and footwear, $10; rent, $105—I think that finding rent at $105 a week would be nearly impossible; electricity, $10; household contents and other services, $15; health, $14, with no health insurance; transport, $18—that is, three trips on a bus and train; phone or internet, $12; recreation and entertainment, $23; holidays, $6; education and training fees, zero dollars; and fees, charges and insurance, zero dollars. That takes you through to a total of $291 a week. That means someone on Newstart is out of pocket by $7 a week and confronting a minus income.

This particular legislation we have before us today will impact on single parents. You might note that the amount that ACOSS has identified for education and training is zero dollars. Once again, I compliment the minister on including in the legislation extra assistance for training. I note that negotiations are taking place to try to approve access for people who have difficulty obtaining transport, because in my electorate a number of communities are quite isolated and if you do not have a car you have to rely on a bus out in the morning and a bus in at night, which will probably take two or three hours to get to where you need to go. Single parents and other, unemployed people will have extreme difficulty in meeting the compliance requirements.

I thought the member for Pearce made a particularly good point about the fact that if a person does not meet those compliance requirements then their Centrelink benefit can be stopped but reinstated once they can prove there was a significant reason for them having their Centrelink payments stopped, such as a sickness of the child. Currently, my daughter and son both have very sick children. They would not be able to go to an interview at Centrelink. When a child is seriously ill, the last thing you think of is: 'I need to go to an interview at Centrelink.' You will be thinking about getting your child to a doctor or the hospital, depending on the level of illness. When you ring the next day or a couple of days later you are told: 'You missed an appointment; therefore your payment has been stopped. It will be reinstated and we will pay you.' Meanwhile, as the member for Pearce said, you cannot put food on the table.

My real concern about this legislation is not the grandfathering of it but the fact that Newstart itself is an inadequate payment. I refer once again to the ACOSS report. What does $35 buy you?

It says half a tank of petrol—or maybe not even half a tank—one pair of school or work shoes, family groceries for one day or one weekly bus-and-train ticket. I really think this is an issue that needs to be looked at. There is quite a disparity between the level of pension and Newstart, and this is where the problem lies.

An aspect of this legislation that I welcome is the liquid asset waiting period amendment. In this bill it is proposed to double the amount of cash or other assets an unemployed person or student may hold without having to wait up to 13 weeks. I think that is a good aspect of the legislation. Currently the maximum reserve amount for liquid assets for many claimants of Newstart sickness benefits is $2,500 for people who are single and $5,000 for those with younger children. Single claimants are required to serve a liquid asset waiting period of one week, up to a maximum of 13 weeks for every $500 of liquid assets above the maximum amount. It is similar with a person who is partnered or has a dependent person.

Beginning 1 July 2013 maximum reserve amounts will be introduced which will reduce the waiting time by up to five weeks for unemployed Australians and students with modest savings and liquid assets. I think that is a really positive aspect of this legislation. For a person who is single and does not have a dependent child it will be doubled from $2,500 to $5,000. They will be required to serve a liquid asset waiting period of at least one week if the liquid asset is of $5,500 or more, up to a maximum of 13 weeks if they have liquid assets of $11,500 or more.

Unemployment leads to a decline in your savings. As I have already identified, the rate of Newstart is quite low. We would all know from constituents who come to see us that any period of unemployment leads to a massive decline in the person's assets. People have trouble meeting their housing loan repayments and draw upon their savings to meet those repayments. It does not take long before they run out of cash and their savings are totally gone. If a person has to live off those assets as well as meet their current financial obligations which they entered into at a time when they were employed and did expect to receive long term the income that they were receiving at that time, it has a very detrimental effect on their savings.

Whilst I do have some problems with this legislation, I will be supporting it. I congratulate the minister on the provision in the legislation for the support that single parents will get with being able to access professional career advice as well as extra money and extra assistance with child care. I think those are very important and very positive aspects of this legislation. I thank both ministers concerned for the work they have put into trying to make this legislation a little fairer, but in the long term I would like to see the Newstart allowance increased. Then I would not have any problem with this legislation whatsoever.

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