Julie Collins (Franklin, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Community Services) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for La Trobe for her question. We were really pleased to be able to announce in the federal budget that the Commonwealth financial counsellors boost that we provided for the global financial crisis is able to continue at existing levels. This money will provide 77 full-time equivalent financial counsellor positions across the country, providing financial counselling services right around Australia. It is an additional $28 million over four years for financial counselling services. We were also able to fund in the budget the financial counsellors peak body. That body was formerly known as AFCCRA but has since had a name change, and I was fortunate enough to attend the financial counsellors' national conference recently where they celebrated the new name. They were very pleased with the government's decision to continue funding at GFC levels on an ongoing basis in the federal budget. They were particularly pleased about the three-year contracts for financial counselling, because these will allow the very skilled staff who are currently providing those financial counselling services to vulnerable Australians—those Australians who require their support—to be retained in those positions. As we were talking to service providers around the country, one of the things that became evident was that shorter term contracts meant that they were losing very valuable staff as it got towards the end of the financial year, and now these three-year contracts will mean that the financial counselling staff who are providing those services to local communities will be able to have ongoing security of their own tenure, and therefore their clients will be able to rely on those services.

The other thing that we have been able to do in the budget is to provide some additional funding for the 1800 number. It is a nationwide number for financial counselling services. You get a financial counsellor on the other end of the line when you ring. That number is 1800007007. It is like a triage system. You answer a few questions and they then decide whether you need a referral to a face-to-face counsellor or whether it is something somebody could help you with over the phone. That funding of $2.2 million will provide some additional support staff but also some critical infrastructure to allow that 1800 number to operate across Australia, so it is really good news for everyone across the country. From talking to the financial counselling services, the providers, about the 77 full-time-equivalent positions across the country, they are really thrilled that they are going to be able to continue to provide those services.

As you indicated in your remarks, the whole suite of services is necessary. The government has recognised in this budget that we do have a patchwork economy. We have gone to great lengths to make sure that those most vulnerable in our community are receiving the support they need. We are doing that with the emergency relief. We are doing that with the financial counselling. And we are doing it with the money management schemes, such as the No Interest Loan Scheme or NILS and the Saver Plus scheme that are operating, by putting an additional $60 million, as I said earlier, into those over the four years.

So we are providing a range of measures. It is not just that you turn up once in a matter of crisis and you get the support you need. That certainly happens, but if you have ongoing issues there is the 1800 number to call for financial counselling, or there are case management workers at emergency relief outlets, or there are financial counsellors provided by those community organisations, who can then refer their clients on, whether it be to the No Interest Loan Scheme or whatever, to get support. So there is a whole suite of measures that we have looked at in this budget, and it has been really pleasing to see the response from the financial counsellors themselves but also from those great community organisations that are out on the ground every day providing these services.

I had the privilege of talking to some of the Anglicare providers here in Parliament House this morning. They were greatly pleased with the measures outlined in the budget when it came to financial counselling services and emergency relief. They also particularly talked to me about the No Interest Loan Scheme provided through Good Shepherd, which is certainly providing a great community service to those Australians who are vulnerable, have a time of crisis and are in great need.

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