LIMESTONE Coast social welfare agency ac.care supports an increase to the Newstart allowance as momentum builds nationally for an overhaul of the system.
Eligible recipients can access the $277.85 weekly unemployment benefit, which unlike other government payments such as aged pension, is not indexed to wages and has been effectively frozen since 1997.
“Single people on Newstart are struggling to find affordable housing and if they do, they are then struggling to pay utility bills and buy food,” ac.care homelessness and community services senior manager Trish Spark said.
Ms Spark said the low payment level made it challenging for people to advance financially or personally, as people on Newstart struggled to afford suitable clothing for job interviews or travel for appointments.
“It is impossible to live on Newstart for more than a month without going into debt and if you have any savings when you first become unemployed you are required to spend all of that before you are eligible for Newstart,” she said.
Ms Spark said the low rate of Newstart affected people of all ages, including children who were unable to attend school excursions or participate in sport and other activities due to the financial position of their parents.
“These kids are at a complete disadvantage and the entire family becomes isolated from the rest of their community,” she said.
Member for Barker Tony Pasin said the Federal Government remained focused on expanding the region’s primary industries to drive job creation.
“I understand it’s not easy to get by without a job which is why the Morrison Government is squarely focused on job creation to help working age Australians gain financial independence,” Mr Pasin said.
“The regions are vitally important to our nation’s economy and the Prime Minister is focused on boosting the size and scale of our agriculture, fisheries and forestry industries from a $60b industry to $100b by 2030.
“We are delivering results with more than 1.3 million jobs being created since the Coalition Government was elected, which is about 240,000 a year compared with just 155,000 on average under the previous government.”
ac.care’s Millicent and Mount Gambier community centres provide a range of services, including emergency relief, financial counselling, interest-free loans and family support, with the Millicent centre also being a Service SA agent, providing information and access to government services.
ac.care provides assistance with transitional housing to help prevent homelessness and advocates with the South Australian Housing Authority and real estate agents to help clients secure long-term housing.
The agency also provides furniture packages and other items for housing to help people transition to stable accommodation.
