Forget an increase, cut to Newstart still on the books

by Anna Chang

With the growing push to raise Newstart leading to former Prime Minister John Howard joining the call, it is worrying that the Coalition’s ‘zombie’ budget measure to actually cut Newstart is still on the budget papers.

Our research shows that Newstart is already well below the poverty line, the Coalition shouldn’t be driving it even lower.

And while the Senate has refused to pass this harsh cut to support for people living on the brink, it is clear that the Coalition’s insistence to keep it on the books means they are waiting for a more agreeable Senate rather than accept community sentiment that Newstart should be raised, not cut.

Back in 2016, when this cut to Newstart first reared its head, we gathered the names of 32 prominent Australians to tell the Coalition not to cut Newstart. It is well past time to scrap it completely, join the open letter here: https://nb.tai.org.au/dont_cut_newstart

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