Mehreen Faruqi (NSW, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the matter of public importance before us today. Newstart is no longer a transition payment, and people receiving Newstart and youth allowance are living in poverty. That is the reality today. We know that Newstart is no longer a transitional payment. We know that 44 per cent of people who are on it are on it for more than two years at a time.

I want to say how proud I am of my Greens colleague Senator Rachel Siewert for her persistent and passionate work to make life better for those who are doing it tough. We know that Newstart, youth allowance and other support allowances are not enough. The single rate of Newstart is a mere $40 a day. Insufficient doesn't even begin to describe it. After paying their rent, Newstart recipients are left with $17 per day. No-one can live on that. Maybe the government senators here can tell me what they should go without—food? Electricity? Medicine? A roof over their head? Maybe you have some brilliant, innovative ideas on how someone forced to live without basic necessities can choose one which is more important than the other.

Our safety net is consistently being eroded, and people on income support are a target for ideological attacks and so-called savings. This is a national shame. You have no right to say, 'The best form of welfare is a job.' This is a line I'm so sick and tired of hearing from the Liberals, and yet we heard it again and again today from Senator Cash and Senator Stoker. It is patronising in the extreme. It is also particularly dishonest, because you refuse to recognise that poverty is a massive barrier to employment. Until people can eat, pay their rent, afford transport and access communications services such as a phone and the internet, they will be extremely limited in their ability to build a life and find employment. Newstart is too low to give people the support they desperately need to get through tough times. And with your refusal to raise Newstart, you are condemning people to cycle upon cycle of poverty.

Instead of coming up with good, evidence-based public policy, this government has come up with ineffective and punitive programs like Work for the Dole, jobactive and ParentsNext, which actually demonise people. These programs force everyone who is struggling into a one-size-fits-all model. Evidence has repeatedly shown that these do not work and that they're causing serious harm. We need approaches that fit individual circumstances and respond to barriers people face, particularly for young people, older Australians, people with disability and First Nations people.

Instead of having compassion, the government is using some of the most vulnerable people in the country as political footballs. The Liberals have chosen to take an ideological approach to unemployment, framing it as a personal moral failing of individuals, rather than addressing the systemic issues such as poverty, intergenerational trauma and job-market conditions. Even 27 years ago, as a new migrant, when I relied on the dole to get by, it was hard to live on those support payments, and it is shocking that, despite the skyrocketing cost of living, the rate of Newstart has not risen in real terms in over two decades.

Senator Rachel Siewert has been sharing the experiences of people on Newstart in this chamber almost every week. So you really don't need much more evidence to know that people are really struggling. You don't even need to go very far to get this information.

The Prime Minister has taken to using abhorrent terms like 'unfunded empathy' when referring to an increase in Newstart. The Liberals certainly find the money when they need to subsidise fossil fuels and they can certainly find the money when they sign-off on massive tax cuts for big corporations, so how come there is no money for the most vulnerable people who need it?

The parliament has the chance to make a real, concrete difference to people's lives and ensure that no-one is forced to live in poverty in Australia.

The Greens have been calling on the government to raise Newstart for years. The Liberal government should know that there's a growing number of us in this place, and out there in the community, who will not stop until we make sure that every Australian can live a life of dignity.