Louise Pratt (WA, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Manufacturing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question this afternoon is to the Minister for Youth and Sport, Senator Colbeck. The Grattan Institute's report Generation gap: ensuring a fair go for younger Australiansfound rising rates of underemployment for under-25s account for much of the growth in underemployment overall. Can the minister confirm that the share of employed young people who are actively seeking more work has grown from 12 per cent to 20 per cent over the past decade?

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Aged Care and Senior Australians) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The thing that the Australian government is concerned about is ensuring that Australians across the board have the opportunity to get a job. That's why the focus of the Australian government has been on employment and creating 1.4 million jobs for Australians over the last 12 months, including over 100,000 for young people. Our focus has been on continuing to keep a strong economy, growing youth employment and ensuring that young people have the opportunity to get a degree.

Our focus, clearly, is on continuing to ensure that young people have the opportunity to get a job. Based on the premise and the structure that the Australian government has put into place, 100,000 jobs were created in the last 12 months in the Australian economy. When I talk to young people around Australia, that is the focus that they have.

Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

When did you last see a young person?

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Aged Care and Senior Australians) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Only very recently, Senator Polley. Our focus remains on doing the things that are important to young people here in Australia: keeping the Australian economy strong and ensuring opportunities for jobs growth.

Opposition senators interjecting—

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I suggest, with respect, that we don't start the new habit of applause, except at the end of first or valedictory speeches. There is a time after question time to note answers. Applause is clearly out of order, whether it is intended or otherwise. Senator Pratt, a supplementary question?

Louise Pratt (WA, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Manufacturing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

With a youth unemployment rate of 11.7 per cent, 260,000 young Australians are unemployed. Can the minister confirm that youth unemployment is more than double the national average for unemployment?

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Aged Care and Senior Australians) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Clearly the youth unemployment rate is higher than the national rate for unemployment across the board. That's a statement of fact. I will confirm the fact that you put on the table. That's why we have a number of programs in place specifically to target the employment of youth in the Australian economy.

Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Youth Jobs PaTH.

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Aged Care and Senior Australians) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Youth Jobs PaTH—which, I might add, Labor opposed tooth and nail—is about getting young people job ready, it's about giving them a go and it's about getting them into a job. The program that the Labor Party opposed in this parliament is about assisting youth and working with youth to get them a job, actually being practical about doing things and not opposing things in the chamber.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Pratt, a final supplementary question?

Louise Pratt (WA, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Manufacturing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Currently there are more than 670,000 young Australians unemployed or underemployed. Can the minister confirm this represents more than 30 per cent of young people?

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Aged Care and Senior Australians) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That's why we have put in place the programs to assist young people to get into a job that we have.

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Aged Care and Senior Australians) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The opposition interject that they're failing, yet the facts don't demonstrate that. When 100,000 jobs for young people have been created in the last 12 months, that doesn't indicate that the programs that we're putting into place are failing; in fact it indicates that we're being proactive about what we're doing as a government. It's about the fact that we're working with Australians within the economy to get people into jobs, and the fact that there are so many jobs being created for young people across the economy is an indication that the programs we're putting in place, opposed by those opposite, are working. They opposed the jobs PaTH program we put in place to assist people to get a foot in the door and to get employment.