In a country where just 47 Australian billionaires have a net wealth of $255 billion, we should be able to provide a real safety net for people to fall back on when times are tough.
Yet currently over 3 million Australians live in poverty, and support payments like JobSeeker aren’t enough to survive on – at $321 a week. It’s hard to look for a job when you can’t afford to drive to the interview or buy a new shirt.
The Greens will increase support payments including JobSeeker, youth allowance, single parent’s pension, and the disability support pension to $88 a day – above the poverty line. We will also scrap measures such as mutual obligations that make accessing support needlessly difficult and stigmatised.