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

I, and also on behalf of Senator Steele-John, seek leave to amend general business notice of motion No. 714, relating to JobKeeper payments.

Leave granted.

I move the motion as amended:

That the Senate—

(a) notes that the Government is leaving young people, students and universities behind in the jobs and economic crisis due to COVID-19 and that:

  (i) The government's planned university fee hikes in the 'Job-ready Graduates' package will saddle new students with billions of dollars in extra debt,

  (ii) Young people have already lost a decade's worth of wage growth, according to a July Productivity Commission report,

  (iii) Youth unemployment rose to 16.3% in July, more than double that of the general population,

  (iv) Young people are disproportionately employed as short term casuals, who are excluded from the Jobkeeper payment, and have experienced widespread cuts to their hours worked during the pandemic, and

  (v) The government has repeatedly excluded universities from eligibility for Jobkeeper, resulting in thousands of job losses across the sector, which will reduce student support, course offerings and quality of learning and teaching.

(b) calls on the Federal Government to:

  (i) expand the JobKeeper payment to all workers, including university staff, early childhood educators and carers', casuals and temporary visa holders, and

  (ii) maintain the JobKeeper payment at $1,500 per fortnight for all workers, including for low income earners.

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Labor will be opposing this motion. There are large parts of it that we agree with, but we don't believe you can deal with an issue like the economic response to COVID-19, and call on the federal government to make a whole range of additional payments, by way of a formal motion in this place. It does not allow debate. That is the point that we've been raising time and time again in this part of the program. Complex issues where there are a variety of opinions, whether you agree with them or not, deserve to be debated in this place. Formal motions don't allow it. They're a very simplistic way of getting a video out, essentially, and Labor—

An honourable senator interjecting—

whilst we are sympathetic—as you know, Senator—to many of the issues raised in this motion, we believe you cannot determine by formal motion the expenditure of billions and billions of dollars in relation to a very, very serious economic problem facing this country. (Time expired)

Sue Lines (WA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the motion, as amended, put by Senator Faruqi in the names of Senator Faruqi and Senator Steele-John be agreed to.

A division having been called and the bells being rung—

With the concurrence of the chamber, we will call off the division and note the objections by the Australian Greens to that motion being defeated. Thank you.