Senate debates

Monday, 18 October 2021

Questions without Notice

COVID-19: Income Support Payments

2:46 pm

Photo of Bridget McKenzieBridget McKenzie (Victoria, National Party, Minister for Emergency Management and National Recovery and Resilience) Share this | Hansard source

It's been a very long lockdown, indeed, Senator Bragg and it's good to see we're opening up. It was over 100 days, in fact, and it was 100 days of limited to no income for some. That's why we were supporting the people of New South Wales to be able to come out of lockdown in a strong economic position. The Liberal and Nationals government COVID disaster payment has provided more than $1.3 billion in financial support for those in New South Wales alone. They did the right thing. They stayed at home. They got vaccinated, reaching both the 70 per cent and 80 per cent milestones before any other state in the country. They did this with the hope that at some point their lives would return to normal.

I'm so pleased to see that coming to life, and I am sure you are too, Senator Bragg. Our support has extended to businesses across the state. In partnership with the New South Wales Liberal-Nationals government, we've seen more than 200,000 businesses receive nearly $6 billion through the JobSaver program. Our government will continue to support the people of New South Wales as they transition out of this pandemic.

Comments

No comments