Steve Georganas (Adelaide, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I stand here today to speak about the unspeakable JobSeeker rate cut. The government's announcement shows contempt for millions of unemployed people, who actually need government support right now. The slashing of the $615 per fortnight JobSeeker rate is the government's latest savage attack on unemployed people. What was announced yesterday is not a raise; it is a cruel, callous cut. It is a vicious cut that will be felt deeply by millions of vulnerable people. This heartless politicised decision will entrench poverty and lock people out of work for decades, as we've seen in every past recession.

The government's poverty machine is designed to crush the unemployed. There's the mutual obligation of 20 interviews a month. Where will people in the regions find 20 interviews a month when they don't even have 20 businesses in some towns? This is wrong. We need to get people out of poverty, ensure that they live with dignity and have the ability to pay for their food, their rent and the everyday needs we in this place take for granted. This is a cruel, callous cut by the government, not an increase in JobSeeker for the unemployed.