Yeah, The Poors are cranky again, this time because a “think tank” has decided there’s too many of us on welfare and that it’s a bad thing. They also decided that the NDIS is welfare and double counted people on that and on support payments like the disability support pension and Job Seeker, so aside from their numbers being dodgy, they seem to think that people on the NDIS are the ones suckling that cash cow, whether really it’s the businesses and “not for profits” making money off disabled people’s need to get out of bed or shower who are raking it in.
Mel argued today that welfare dependency isn’t actually a thing, and she has a point, but I’d like to also argue that being dependent on welfare is a good thing, actually, and the safety net should be more reliable and available to more people.
People shouldn’t be waiting over three months from applying for the aged pension or youth allowance to see any money. They shouldn’t be having their payment suspended due to an error from a JSP, they shouldn’t have to spend hours on hold if they can even get on hold to Centrelink to get their entitlements reinstated.
Welfare SHOULD be dependable as a safety net. For those who can’t work, for those who are sick or disabled or aged or caring for themselves or others. We should be able to access it in a timely fashion when circumstances arise like unemployment or a new baby. Welfare dependence is a good thing, actually, and I wish Australia’s welfare system was more dependable.
Got a rental inspection this Tuesday so tidying up. Yeah it’s soon, but I’ve generally had one a month after moving into a new place. We’ve already got it to a way better cleanliness standard than what we moved into, and Bruce has done amazing things in the yard. So as long as they don’t care about the burnt patch of lino from my little fire day two here, all it good. Sounds like Bruce’s kids and their mum finally have to move out of their place, so I’m crossing my fingers and toes for them to find a suitable rental.
Still no internet. Called TPG this morning at the suggestion of NBN to see if there was any sooner install dates, no there isn’t Feb 29 is sooner than any others that are available – March 11 is where you’d be booked in for now. I also asked for a wireless dongle and they’re sending one with 60gig a month for three months on it – it’s more for Bruce than for me, his phone either isn’t liking being tethered all the time or was dying either way.
Trying to do little things that are really big things to work towards my goals this year. Got a busy Valentine’s Day coming up with the Kflay concert I’ve been dying for down at the Oxford Arts Factory! Gotta figure out how to do the Antipoverty Centre AGM before that – prolly just on my phone and get to Sydney early or something. We’ll see. I’m putting myself forward for a board role, so we’ll see how that goes. I’m actually nominating ahead unlike basically gatecrashing the AUWU AGM and elections and being relieved I missed out on the ordinary member role on their committee of management. Those selected are awesome and certainly deserved it.
One of the things I said I want to be able to do is go down to Sydney for things and be safe and sober and trust myself and be trusted by my partner. It’s been nearly three years since I’ve had a drink, and don’t really want to. But not yet to the point of coming off the Antabuse. Maybe this year.
Looks like I’m going to be doing more on the Nobody Deserves Poverty campaign this year too, at least up until the May Budget. Most Australians don’t think anyone does deserve to live in poverty, but seem to still excuse their politicians keeping welfare payments below the poverty line, so hopefully we can get more mainstream discussion on that (ugh, Facebook), get people talking about it and too their reps, get more organisations to sign on and push for welfare rates to be lifted above the poverty line in the May Budget. ALL payments, because yes, Jobseeker and Youth allowance are appallingly low, but carers, parenting and pensions are also still below the poverty line. A rising tide lifts all ships. And we need more voices of Welfare recipients in pollies’ ears when they’re still making comments about $180k not being a lot…
We sold the AU so we now have money to repair the other Ford. And I can justify going full Hello Kitty on the Corolla. If you wanna help with the HelloKittyfication, there’s some items on my wishlist that would be sweet additions. That also means that some days I’m carless so really miss the NBN more and can’t wait til Feb 29 and decent internet and streaming my favourite games – hunting wabbits in Red Dead online and grinding in GTA. I have a couple of games I’ve downloaded to play offline, but I miss those one s in particular.
So, the stage three tax cuts are officially less unfair. Cool. They still aren’t necessary, and would be better spent on services.
But since you’re increasing the take home pay of everyone with a paid job, then hows about some scraps for the poorest? The 23 year old “kids” on youth allowance struggling on $320 a week? The 2.6 million carers out there, the ones on $400 a week while saving the taxpayer hundreds of thousands? The carer who gets nothing because their partner earns too much. The aged or disabled pensioner living below the poverty line while by definition unable to supplement their income with regular paid work.
Australia’s 2.65 million unpaid carers are our nation’s unsung heroes and our Government is committed to ensuring they have the supports they need. pic.twitter.com/Z1OnCCgjmO
As Labor politicians head to Canberra to discuss #CostOfLiving, #FOI reveals that, in the last 12 months, neither Minister Rishworth, Shorten or Collins have received briefings, reports or analyses on the effects of the cost-of-living crisis on welfare recipients. #fail#auspolpic.twitter.com/zdJATFYLSW
“As Labor politicians head to Canberra to discuss #CostOfLiving, #FOI reveals that, in the last 12 months, neither Minister Rishworth, Shorten or Collins have received briefings, reports or analyses on the effects of the cost-of-living crisis on welfare recipients. #fail #auspol”
Yeah, of course they haven’t. They run inquiries, make statements and chat to charities but don’t actually care about what it’s like to try to survive on welfare in this county.
Youth allowance is clearly the worst. with the politicians assuming you can both rely on your parents but they can’t have too much for you to be eligible. And it’s up til 24 years old… because we all know that you get a kids discount on food and rent til 24. Oh what, that was 12 for the kids meal? My bad.
The next table shows JobSeeker rates. $686 a fortnight if you’re partnered and your partner doesn’t earn much at all. $802.50 for singles. How DO people look for work on less than $50/day? or even on $57?
I get $59/day on DSP and I don’t have to leave the house and participate in society. Oh, I should be able to? Tell that to the cost of living committee.
And rent assistance? $85/week that just pushes up rents and makes it impossible for those not already receiving it to enter the rental market? Zoe, you have no idea, you think that it’s just a nice little supplement when really it’s just 18% of my rent. Forgive me for not being all grateful for the $13 a week extra I got just before my rent went up $60/week and we had to spend thousands moving.
Even if rent assistance was a good thing (which it isn't) and didn't just line the pockets of landlords (which it does), a 40% raise would increase the max rate from $184.80 a fortnight to $258.72…. a blip on the radar not available to people who don't actually have a home https://t.co/VscEkf0t3Gpic.twitter.com/vO3Qu610FF
I’m not feeling coherent yet, I’m only on my first diet coke, I didn’t sleep well and people were being loud and had the tv on this morning and I can’t process all that before say 10am.
I emailed Foodbank seeking more information about how donations work and who pays for what and why some places charge customers and some places aren’t allowed to but I didn’t get a response. I emailed TPG asking for use of a wifi modem til my innernet gets installed on Feb 29 and I didn’t get a response. I emailed Dan Repacholi to ask his to ask for an increase to welfare at the crisis meeting tomorrow but he just said he’s find out what was going to happen at the meeting himself and pass it on. Don’t shoot the messenger, even if he can shoot himself.
I’ll leave you with Nollsy while you email your local MP what would make a difference to you this cost of living crisis in the vain hope that they even have input into the process:
The famous quote I thought you should be going back to was Bob Hawke’s “By 1990, no Australian child will be living in poverty”. But that’s not today’s Labor party is it? The welfare state was already being disbanded in Bob’s days, but Labor of the new millennium have really gone for it, embracing the turns to the right of their opposition, while coming into power on weak words and impressions that they are there for those in need.
“Nobody left behind” was Albanese’s thing. But people are being left behind in greater numbers than ever. The lip service paid, forming an economic inclusion committee and ignoring its key recommendation to bring jobseeker to 90% of the pension. It wasn’t even a big ask really, the pensions are still below the poverty line and you though “yeah nah, let’s throw them $20/week” while costs of living spiraled for everyone. People who are working full time are becoming homeless, sleeping in tents and cars, dodging bushfires and floods. The rental landscape is bleak, and home ownership impossible when former public housing is going for a million plus in Sydney suburbs.
We saw the happy snaps at the Christmas lunches and hamper giveaways for poor people at your favourite charities. The ones that are meant to just fill a gap for the most needy, but are seeing record requests for help. Extending the single parent payment to kids aged up to 14 still doesn’t get those families out of poverty when you still have carers payments and the like below the poverty line. The $88 a day we’ve been asking for for a couple of years now is surely outdated, and rent assistance is a joke when it maxes out at $180 a week in a landscape where you take what you can et when you can get and hope your asthma isn’t exacerbated by the mold.
Healthcare costs are spiraling, and many GPs aren’t bulk-billing kids anymore, even with the increased incentives, so parents are forced to make some really tough decisions when it comes to prioritising healthcare of their kids, you wouldn’t want to be seen as neglectful because basic medical care is unaffordable. You won’t get more help from the system, because it’s already giving you all that’s legislated for, so you’d better make do and deal the the policing and more stress.
Medicines will go up again next week – 40c a script for concession card holders. But that’s fair right? we got indexation in one hand on our pensions, so the government ought to take away with the other hand.
No Aussie child in poverty by 1990? Those kids have had their own kids by now, some are even close to the next generation. But it’s only going backwards, and boosting charities and incentives for ladies who lunch, blokes on charity golf days and well meaning white women to drive their leased cars to negotiate donations isn’t the way to do it.
Raise welfare above the poverty line, build and buy more public housing, enough to house everyone who needs it, the effects will flow up, unlike the stage 3 tax cuts that will not trickle down.
Happy New Year, Andrew Leigh, I’m sorry you don’t see that you should be working to make the charities portfolio redundant rather than building up our country’s reliance on the whims of those with a dollar to spare.
