$40 a day is not enough

The Greens say that taking Jobseeker back to $40 a day is cruel and will have devastating impacts on our community. 
 
“Living on $40 a day, well below the poverty line means going without food, it means going without medication and it means finding meaningful work becomes further and further out of reach”, Australian Greens spokesperson on Family and Community Services Senator Rachel Siewert said. 
 
“Mr Morrison says that the Australian people won't let the virus break our spirit, but taking JobSeeker back to $40 a day is breaking our hearts. 
 
“By introducing the COVID Supplement of an extra $550 a fortnight for people on Jobseeker and Youth Allowance at the height of the pandemic in March 2020 the Government acknowledged that $40 a day was never enough for someone to survive on. 
 
“This has not changed. 
 
“The COVID Supplement, first introduced at the rate of $550 a fortnight in March 2020 transformed people’s lives and lifted millions out of poverty. 
 
“The COVID Supplement of $550 a fortnight enabled people on the JobSeeker Payment, Youth Allowance, and Parenting Payment to be able to afford nutritious food, three meals a day, children’s school activities, essential medications, housing costs, new clothing and shoes, and heating and cooling.
 
“This is just cruelty from the Morrison Government, plain and simple. 
 
“No one should live on $40 a day, whether or not we are in a pandemic or a recession. 
 
“It doesn't matter if there is a few people on Jobseeker or one million people, no-one in a country as wealthy as Australia should be living in poverty.”