A report from Deloitte Access Economics, commissioned by the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS), has concluded that scrapping the coronavirus supplement for JobSeeker recipients would cost 145,000 jobs over two years and reduce GDP growth by $31.3 billion. Moreover, regional areas would be hardest hit.
The supplement is slated to be reduced from $550 per fortnight to $250 on 25 September, and abolished altogether at the end of 2020:
“In the two years to 2021-22, removal of the coronavirus supplement is projected to cost the economy $31.3bn in gross domestic product,” the report states.
