A LEADING human service provider in the Mallee fears a “perfect storm” is brewing for the region’s most vulnerable with the ability to cover living expenses “quickly evaporating”.
Mallee Family Care said it is experiencing increasing demand for assistance as the cost of even the most basic necessities have risen in recent months.
Chief executive Teresa Jayet said the Federal Government needs to lift the rate of support payments to ease the financial pressure facing households.
“The reality is that back in 2019, payments such as JobSeeker were inadequate – after essentials were covered, many people were almost $20 short at the end of each week,” Ms Jayet said.
“Fast forward to 2022 and fuel is over $2 a litre, and living costs like groceries and rent are rapidly climbing, along with interest rates.
“However, government support payments are failing to keep pace with the economic pressures.”
Ms Jayet said Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, in his victory speech, assured the country that under his government “no-one would be left behind”.
She said that raising the rate of support payments was a critical component of the Prime Minister’s commitment.
“What we need now, what our communities need now, is a significant shift in policy,” she said.
“The Prime Minister, who has lived experience of the support system, understands the impact it can have on people’s lives and he has an opportunity to drive generational change.
“We’re calling on the Prime Minister to raise the rate of support payments in line with inflation and to increase Commonwealth Rental Assistance to a point that ensures we don’t see a tidal wave of homelessness and entrenched poverty across this country.”
Among the rising costs Australians are confronting is an average mortgage increase of more than $400 per month, and Ms Jayet said this increase would be passed on to rental tenants.
“We’ve also been warned to brace for rising utility costs, with some states fearing a doubling of charges,” she said.
“Couple this with higher supermarket, medical and fuel costs and even those with a stable income will struggle to make ends meet.”
Ms Jayet said the 2021 Census data demonstrated the hardship that is being experienced around the country and that raising payments would benefit the recipients and the broader community.
“When people have adequate funds they purchase goods, they pay their bills and rent – all these things help stimulate the economy, keeping small and medium businesses viable,” she said.
Mallee Family Care is among countless agencies lobbying government for rate increases, arguing that the COVID-19 supplementary payments proved the value of an increased rate.
“During the peak of COVID-19, what we actually saw was a decline in the number of people living in poverty as a result of the former government’s responsive supplementary payments,” Ms Jayet said.
She said a rate increase of at least $70 per day, along with an increase in Commonwealth Rental Assistance and access to other supports would help manage the impact of rising living costs.
“We’re heading into the perfect storm and to do nothing is to condemn vulnerable Australians to a life of stress and uncertainty and to remove hope and opportunity from the lives of their children,” she said.
