Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Families and Social Services) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Siewert, for your question. I think I've said a number of times in this place that living without a job would be extremely difficult, and that is why this government has been so incredibly focused on getting the economy to recover—so that jobs can be created so that we have an opportunity to get people who find themselves unemployed, who are on working-age payments, back into work. This morning's announcement was very much around making sure that we have a targeted response, a targeted package of measures, to ensure we are giving people the best opportunity, the best incentives and the best support to be able to get back into work.

Senator Siewert, we were very concerned about making sure that we got the balance right in terms of being able to support Australians who find themselves on working-age payments. We need to support people while they're looking for work, but we also need to make sure we are creating the right incentives to encourage them to look for that work. We also need to remove the disincentives, which is part of the package of measures that have been announced by Senator Cash, to try and make sure that we don't disincentivise people from working. But, most particularly, we need to make sure that our working-age system is fair and sustainable for the people who need it and the taxpayers who pay for it. So, today, what we have done is we have increased the base level of the payment. But, equally, as Senator Siewert would well know, the Australian working-age payment system, our welfare system, is a very comprehensive and targeted system. We have a range of different supplements and allowances and supports in place that recognise the unique situations and conditions that Australians have, whether they have children and get the family tax benefit, whether they are renters and get access to Commonwealth rental assistance or whether there are a myriad of other— (Time expired)