Rachel Siewert WA, Australian Greens
11:59 am
I move:
That the Senate—
(a) notes the Budget Priorities Statement 2018-19 of the Australian Council of Social Service launched this week in Canberra;
(b) recognises that research, from 2017, shows that single rates of unemployment payments are completely inadequate to cover basic living costs;
(c) acknowledges that our social safety net currently fails to protect those seeking work from falling into poverty;
(d) notes that the Australian Council of Social Service calls for an increase of $75 a week to allowance payments for single people from 1 January 2019; and
(e) urges the Federal Government to increase the single rate of Newstart and related allowances by $75 a week.
Notice of motion altered on 14 February 2018 pursuant to standing order 77.
James McGrath Queensland, Liberal National Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister
I seek leave to make a short statement.
James McGrath Queensland, Liberal National Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister
Over 99 per cent of recipients on Newstart also receive one or more other government payments. Australia targets a bigger share of its cash transfers to households in the bottom 20 per cent than any other OECD country. The coalition government knows the best form of welfare is a job and will look to policies that improve employment opportunities for those on Newstart.