Australia’s community welfare sector gathering in Adelaide today will make a united call for a $50 increase in the single Newstart Allowance payment in this year’s federal Budget.
ACOSS CEO Dr Cassandra Goldie will tell the peak body’s National Conference that the much needed increase is urgent and must be funded in this last Budget before the federal election if we are serious about dealing with the worsening level of poverty in our country.
Dr Goldie will tell the gathering that, "One in eight people are living in poverty in Australia, including one in six children - this is an indictment on our nation.”
"People who are out of paid work and on the lowest payments are among those at highest risk. The Newstart payment continues to fall further behind pensions because it's indexed only to the Consumer Price Index instead of wages.
"In last week's indexation increases people on the Aged Pension received an $18 a week increase whereas people on Newstart only received a $2 a week increase. The single rate of Newstart remains $35 a day.
"The difference between the payments is now $150. Newstart hasn't been increased in nearly 20 years. Now is the time to correct this record.
"In recent years we've seen changes to tighten eligibility for the Disability Support Pension force as many as 70,000 more people with disability onto the low Newstart payment. And recently more than 80,000 single parents and their children were dropped to the same payment and lose between $60-$100 a week.
"This get tough approach to the vulnerable members of our community has simply got to stop.
"The parliament has the most compelling responsibility to act now and urgently - business, unions, economics and tax experts, employment experts as well three parliamentary committees, the OECD and UN monitors all agree."
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