Income support needs a real increase, not just indexation
Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) Media Release
ACOSS is calling on the Federal Government to substantially boost income support payments after it announced small increases due to routine indexation.
Some income support payments including Youth Allowance and Austudy are adjusted for inflation on January 1 each year. Youth Allowance for a single person is only going up by $1.70 a day.
“For people living on these payments, every dollar counts – but indexation alone is not enough,” said ACOSS CEO Cassandra Goldie AO.
“The soaring cost of rent, food, and essentials is driving people on income support payments deeper into poverty.
“People receiving income support are being forced to make impossible choices between eating, paying rent, or accessing healthcare. Routine indexation adjustments barely scratch the surface, and the current rates are completely out of step with the reality of living costs.
“The government must implement a real increase to ensure a liveable base rate – not just a nominal indexation that continues to leave people behind.”
ACOSS is also calling for payments such as Youth Allowance and Austudy to be indexed every six months, like JobSeeker and pensions.
“Young people are being forced to wait 12 months before they see an indexation increase in their payments, even when inflation hits record highs.
“By the time the slight boost arrives, they may no longer be eligible or still enrolled, effectively missing out on income that should have helped keep their heads above water during their studies.”
Dr Goldie said the rate of income support must be lifted to at least $82 a day, in line with the Age Pension.
“The way to end poverty is by raising the rate of income support. One of the world’s wealthiest nations should not be condemning people to poverty.”
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4 comments
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Fiona Moore
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Anon. E. Mouse
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Andyfiftysix
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Bert
Return to home pageCan you stop asking for less than the poverty line and start asking for everyone to be brought up over the poverty line (Henderson Poverty line is about $88/day).
A lot of young adults are not able to access any centrelink payment because their parent’s income is too high until they are 25 I think. The cut off limit of a parents income is very low. This keeps young adults from accessing help seeking a job, or even a basic payment. It is a nasty set up and its not wonder so many young people do not feel part of society.
the system is designed to be punative. Its not supposed to encourage rational behaviour.
The FW who designed the rules assumed their own worst behavior and assumed everyone else would do the same. There is no real effort to just deal with facts, only what the government can get away with not supporting. It ideology gone nuts…. a protestant slant if you will.
If 3-5% unemployed are going to be factored into the system, at least have the decency to support those in that bracket. The fear is that when people know its ” easy money”, you lose motivation in the work force…….a false assumption about human behaviour. The question i would ask is what kind of sysem do you have where people dont want to participate in the first place. Fear of starvation will only take society so far into the jungle.
Keeping people off starvation surely would improve everyones motivation to buy into what society has to offer. That includes work and improving one’s lot.
If your on a pension in australia, your effectively in gods waiting room. You cant afford a “life”.
Bloody dole bludgers… pay them an almost living dole and they buy surfboards and chase waves.
I remember those days. and it was as much bullshit then as it is today.
Yes, benefits need to be sufficient to give the recipient some degree of dignity, to be able to afford to dress appropriately for an interview, to be able to enjoy a healthy diet, to have the resources to seek suitable employment.
Politicians set the rules, most of them have not experienced poverty, have not experienced the lack of dignity that poverty brings.