Andrew Wilkie (Clark, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I will support this amendment and I applaud the opposition for moving it. Could I suggest that this country needs a different approach to government pensions and payments. Rather than talking about the age pension, the disability support pension and unemployment benefits, I think we need to start talking about a living income, and our starting point needs to be: how much does someone need to live with dignity in this country? It clearly needs to be above the poverty line. There's no logical reason why someone who's unemployed, who may well be younger, with a family, should be getting paid less than someone on the age pension or the disability support pension. I think that all people who are relying on the government for income support should be paid a comparable amount and it should be above the poverty line.

I support the idea of maintaining the COVID-19 supplement, but I think we should go further. In fact, subparagraph (b) actually goes to that point. Everyone needs a fairer go at the moment. You can't live with dignity and pay market rent on the age pension, you can't live with dignity and pay market rent if you're on the disability support pension, and you certainly can't live with dignity and go about your life, maybe bring up a family, if you're unemployed and getting anything less than a similar amount of money. I encourage the government to start looking at pensions and payments in that light and to turn its mind to the whole idea of a living income that all people who need income support in this country receive and benefit from. I think that's a much better approach.

If the government won't do that then—for heaven's sake—at least make sure that people who are unemployed get a fair deal, and not only that they get a fair deal eventually but that they have some certainty between now and then. I think it's quite cruel for the government to be saying, 'Well, yes, we do have an intention for unemployment benefits to be above $40 a day after 31 December.' That doesn't give enough comfort to someone who is two months out from that. They don't know whether they are going to get $41, $42, $60 or $80 a day. They don't know. They are planning now. I think it is not intentional cruelty by the government, but it is cruelty nonetheless that people just don't know what the future holds. I think we have got a good enough sense of the economic situation now and what it will be over the next couple of months that the government can give more certainty.

It would a very big thing for the government to do—to actually come in and support this amendment. I believe the opposition have moved it in good faith. It would give great comfort to people who are bearing down on 31 December and the prospect of a big cut in their household income. It would give some comfort to people on the age pension and the disability pension. As the Leader of the Opposition so beautifully put, when he was a child, his mum didn't have to worry about buying hand sanitiser. Well, someone who is on a pension these days does have to buy hand sanitiser and all sorts of other things, and the rate of bulk-billing has gone down in real terms. So I will support the amendment, I encourage the government to support the amendment and I applaud the opposition for moving it.

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