Tin ear ScoMo vows to return JobSeekers to poverty

Advertisement

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has vowed to return the JobSeeker allowance (formerly Newstart) back to $560 a fortnight once the coronavirus lockdown has ended. However, he is facing backlash from some Coalition MPs:

While the prime minister has insisted a raft of crisis-related economic support measures will “snap back” to their old arrangements to avoid an ongoing budget drain, social welfare advocates argue the jobseeker allowance can never revert to just $40 a day…

The Nationals MP for Cowper in NSW, Pat Conaghan, said the effective doubling of the allowance formerly known as Newstart should continue well beyond the six-month deadline…

The full text of this article is available to MacroBusiness subscribers

$1 for your first month, then:
Cancel at any time through our billing provider, Stripe
About the author
Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.