Brett Whiteley (Braddon, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Murray for her contribution, which I think hit the nub of the feelings of regional and rural representatives in this house of parliament. It has been a long time coming and it is a very worthy piece of legislation, indeed, as I stand to speak on the Social Services Legislation Amendment (More Generous Means Testing for Youth Payments) Bill 2015. The coalition is committed to young Australians. We are committed to delivering better outcomes for them and we remain committed to giving them a hand-up, not just a handout. Whilst we are significantly tightening accountability within the Social Services portfolio, we are also delivering more realistic and more generous means testing for youth payments, and I know that will come as tremendous news for so many Australian families. This bill seeks to remedy some of the ways in which means testing has fallen short of the mark in delivering youth allowance to those who should be receiving it. This bill is consistent with that commitment and is a consequence of the sound fiscal management of this government because, when you manage the nation's finances in an effective and efficient manner, the taxpayer can then afford to give those of our young people that are in need a hand-up when they need it.

It is through providing more jobs and increased growth that this government is ensuring our generous social welfare system remains sustainable into the future. That is why the ALP's reckless political games around the blocking of the China free trade agreement was so fundamentally reckless. Those opposite care more about appeasing the militant CFMEU than they do about ensuring our economy can continue to provide a sustainable and cohesive social welfare system. When in government, they wrote blank cheques that they could not afford in this social services space and drove the country to the brink through their erratic and inefficient fiscal management. Conversely, this government has delivered free trade agreements with Korea, Japan and now China. We have positioned this great country's economy to take advantage of these emerging and populist markets. It is such prudent and responsible fiscal management which has ensured that this government can deliver a more generous means test for calculating youth allowance. It is only a coalition government that can provide a guarantee to the Australian people on social security sustainability.

This government remains absolutely conscious of the obligation we have to the taxpayer. That is why this more generous means test for youth allowance is characterised by nuance. This bill's nuanced approach to means testing is indicative of the understanding this government has of the needs of our young Australians and the demands of fiscal responsibility, because, whilst we of the government side want to provide even greater opportunity to our young Australians, we have taken an obligation to the taxpayer very seriously indeed. This government is committed to an affordable and sustainable social welfare system that is fundamentally rooted in sound economic management of the taxpayer's wallet. This government is not in the business of pursuing populist economic policy. We want to make the right decisions, and sometimes we have to make the hard decisions to deliver better economic results for this nation.

The financial impacts of this bill have been scrutinised and weighed against the benefits they will deliver for our young Australians. Due to measures enacted in this bill, our young people will be better off, and the taxpayer will get a return on the investment we are making in our young men and our young women. This bill introduces measures announced in the 2015 budget. It provides more generous and consistent support for some of our younger Australians. The coalition believes in investing in our young people and in unlocking their potential regardless of the circumstances in which they have been raised.

This bill is utterly consistent with the coalition's values. In our federal party platform it states that we believe in equality of opportunity, with all Australians having the opportunity to reach their full potential in a tolerant national community. Ours is a guarantee of equality of opportunity for all rather than the perverse pursuit of equality of outcome. We know that through giving the individual space to achieve, and opportunity to succeed, Australians are imbued with such initiative that they will prosper. This bill is consistent with that endeavour and it is targeted specifically at unlocking the potential of our young Australians who are pursuing a hand up, not a hand out. This bill will benefit young people in my electorate of Braddon especially as it provides more generous and consistent support for families with dependent young people who qualify for certain youth income support payments. This bill is a generous broadening of income support for socially disadvantaged people in our society and will particularly assist young people in rural and regional Australia.

The coalition government is entirely committed to unlocking the potential of all Australians. From Alice Springs to Broome or from Cairns to Burnie, this government is delivering better outcomes and more opportunity for our young Australians. This bill is evidence of our commitment to hope, reward and opportunity. We understand that income support helps to deliver better outcomes for socially disadvantaged Australians and aids in unlocking opportunities for them. This bill will particularly affect our younger rural and regional Australians wishing to continue to study after graduating from year 12. This bill will enable some young Australians to fulfil their potential as they move from school into the workforce. This is a great win for my electorate as many of my young constituents seek to further themselves through tertiary study. It is my hope and the hope of many of my colleagues that this bill will encourage many, who simply could not afford to do so, to now pursue further study be it in a university or in a trade.

This bill will deliver better outcomes for young people through several changes to the manner in which youth allowance is calculated—and thank goodness for that. This bill removes the family assets test and the family actual means test from the Youth Allowance parental means test. Removing the family assets test for Youth Allowance will allow some 4,100 additional dependent Youth Allowance claimants to qualify for the first time. This will on average allow those individuals to access some $7,000 a year in youth allowance. This is a great outcome for some of our younger Australians and will give them a greater chance to invest in their own future. This is evidence of this government's commitment to greater opportunity for our young Australians. Removing the family actual means test will result in some 1,200 more young Australians receiving Youth Allowance for the first time. It will also deliver an increase in payments for around 4,860 existing students by approximately $2,000 each and every year.

The removal of these means tests will deliver a more reasonable assessment of our young Australians, deliver better application of Youth Allowance giving them a hand up and increasing their opportunity. Through these measures, the coalition will deliver better outcomes for our young Australians especially, as I said, in rural and regional Australia. These changes mean that farming families will not have farm assets counted towards the means test for their dependent children claiming Youth Allowance. This will directly assist many young Australians across regional Australia and deliver them the capacity to further invest in themselves through further study. This measure will particularly deliver some much needed nuance to the social services space with regard to our farming families. As some of our farmers contend, with the unforgiving Australian climate as the member for Murray so eloquently described earlier, their assets do not necessarily translate into cash at hand.

I am proud to say that this government has shown much understanding of the agricultural sector in this bill, which will deliver better outcomes for our rural Australians. It is a measure I welcome and know it will deliver better outcomes for the constituents of Braddon. I am glad that this government is extending the same opportunities that exist for many young people living in the city. The perception that all farmers have huge on-hand wealth is simply not true. This bill will deliver a more accurate assessment for Youth Allowance of farming families and it is a measure of which I am particularly proud.

This government remains resolved to delivering effective outcomes in the social services space and this bill is part of that undertaking. This government believes in sound and responsible measures that deliver the best possible outcomes for those who need it most whilst maintaining our obligation to the taxpayer for frugal fiscal management. This government believes very much in opportunity for all. It is my belief that this bill achieves both these requirements. This bill is one of a multitude that this government has delivered in the social services space since our election and is evidence to this government's success in social services.

Through applying more generous means testing for youth payments, this government is fulfilling its promise to unlock the potential of each and every Australian. Importantly, however, there is a cost to the taxpayer in this bill. It should be noted that this government cares about every single tax dollar we spend. We understand the government does not have any money; it only has the hard-earned tax money of ordinary Australians. This government is delivering sound and effective economic management of this nation's finances. It is only through the sound fiscal stewardship of the coalition that we are able to enact a bill such as this.

This government is as frugal as it is generous, and I am satisfied by the due diligence this bill pays to the taxpayer and the generosity it shows to our young Australians. Those opposite have a very well recorded track record of delivering poor economic policy alongside inaccurate and inefficient social security legislation. This witch's brew of fiscal ineptitude left the coalition with a real mess to clean up in this legislative space and the work is an ongoing task. It is a testament to the resolve and hard work of this government that we have taken a verity of measures to increase accountability, decrease waste and increase the benefits of a targeted and nuanced social welfare. There is much more to do in this space, but I am glad this government is delivering better outcomes for our young Australians.

It is my belief that broadening the means test is a very big step in the right direction when it comes to giving young regional and rural Australians a helping hand in their development. There has always been a disparity in the provision of services to these young members of our society. It is the coalition that continues to rectify this inequality of opportunity to our young regional citizens. We must do more, but it is absolutely true that this bill will deliver better outcomes for younger people and this government will continue to work toward a more efficient and effective social welfare system. This is an endeavour of which I am proud to participate in and I commend this bill to the house.

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