<
https://www.theguardian.com/business/grogonomics/article/2024/may/23/australia-federal-budget-2024-jobseeker-centrelink-welfare-inequality>
"On Monday the Productivity Commission released its snapshot of inequality
report. As a “snapshot”, the report is just presenting the current situation
rather than offering solutions. But unfortunately, it also perpetuates the lie
that inequality and poverty is beyond our ability to fix.
It took only two paragraphs for warning bells to start ringing in my ears. On
the opening page, the commission notes “the initial period of the pandemic saw
an unprecedented fall in income inequality”. This of course did not happen by
accident but “as a result of the significant increase in support payments from
the Australian Government”.
These increases “included the Coronavirus Supplement, which was paid to income
support recipients, such as those receiving JobSeeker and Youth Allowance”.
All good so far. The government increased payments $550 a fortnight and it
caused “an unprecedented fall in income inequality”.
But then comes the kicker.
The Productivity Commission states with a misguided certainty that only comes
from a lifetime of adherence to the God of small government and market forces
that these payments were “not fiscally sustainable in the long term”.
Excuse me?
Not fiscally sustainable? Sorry, but that is just flat out wrong. And
irresponsibly so."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
