Keywords: Youth Allowance
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RELIGION
- Frank Brennan
- 11 September 2017
2 Comments
The real call of Everyone's Business is to move beyond them and us to admitting that there is only us. If we are truly to build an inclusive and sustainable economy, it can't be just those in full time paid employment who are part of that economy. We take seriously the principles of neo-liberalism, letting the market decide. But we set limits on the market for the common good.
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AUSTRALIA
- Frank Brennan
- 29 August 2017
10 Comments
In an age of 'budget repair' when both sides of politics are trying to contain the welfare budget, the search for savings and silver bullets is relentless. If Ministers Porter and Tudge are really seeking 'a way of assisting people to get off drugs and back into work', they should convince their cabinet colleagues of the need to increase the Newstart and Youth Allowance so that it might provide a real start for assisting people to survive with dignity while preparing for and getting back into work.
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RELIGION
- Frank Brennan
- 08 May 2017
1 Comment
Our Church is presently a strained, outdated social institution with an exclusively male hierarchy and clergy. But it is also the privileged locus for us to be called to the banquet of the Lord sharing theology and sacrament which have sustained the hearts and minds of similar pilgrims for two millennia. Thank God for Pope Francis who is showing us the way, helping us to find meaning in our changing and chaotic world, putting a fresh spring in the step of all those Catholics holding in tension the prophetic and the practical, the theological and the humanist, the tradition and the contemporary reality.
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AUSTRALIA
- Julie Edwards
- 27 June 2016
9 Comments
Both major parties offer 'one size fits all' approaches to youth unemployment. This ignores the huge difference in experiences - and employability - between different categories of young person. Not all have completed high school and live at home in a supportive environment. For young people at risk of homelessness, those experiencing mental illness or substance abuse problems, or those who have had contact with the criminal justice system, the initiatives of both parties simply won't be effective.
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AUSTRALIA
- Fatima Measham
- 12 May 2015
3 Comments
The practice of presenting the budget to parliament came out of a crisis. In 1733, British Prime Minister Robert Walpole's announced plan to impose an excise tax on wine and tobacco was met with outrage. It reflects the reality that budget presentation did not start out as a neutral exercise in transparency but rather a mishandled piece of political communication.
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AUSTRALIA
- Philip Mendes
- 17 March 2015
2 Comments
There are currently two national inquiries into the experiences of children in out-of-home care. Yet neither is specifically exploring what happens to young people transitioning from care. This is like a football team putting in a good performance in the first half but neglecting the second, which decides the outcome.
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AUSTRALIA
- Brendan Long
- 02 March 2015
5 Comments
As the freshly minted Social Services Minister, Scott Morrison has moved quickly to soften the tough stance he took in the Immigration portfolio. But it won't necessarily be easy. Patrick McClure has presented him with a massively controversial report on welfare reform which, if acted upon, would significantly reduce the incomes of a million marginalised Australians.
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AUSTRALIA
The Budget does not signal an end to the 'age of entitlement', as there are still plenty of beneficiaries of government expenditure or foregone revenue. You don't need to be an economist to see that collectively the Budget measures will impact negatively on the income levels of the poor and disadvantaged. The discussion now must be who will pick up the pieces left behind by Government in developing a system with obvious gaps.
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AUSTRALIA
- Ray Cassin
- 30 October 2013
17 Comments
There is a bizarre and remorseless logic to some of Joe Hockey's proposals, such as the absorption of Centrelink by Australia Post and making Medibank Private responsible for delivering the services of the National Disability Insurance Scheme. ACTU president Ged Kearney described the Centrelink proposal as 'moving into space-cadet territory'. She's right: the space cadets are flying the ship now.
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AUSTRALIA
- Luke Williams
- 27 May 2013
10 Comments
If I was a long-term unemployed person, how would I answer the question, 'What has the ALP done for me?' 'Lots, and not much.' The Gillard Government's commitment to developing workforce skills suggests it values decent work, not just jobs, but in positing productivity as the path to prosperity it seems more Reagan than Keynes.
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AUSTRALIA
- Paul O'Callaghan
- 08 May 2012
11 Comments
When budgets are tight, governments seek savings by moving people from an expensive payment to cheaper payment categories. By moving a larger number of single parents from parenting payment to the cheaper Newstart allowance the Government will effectively remove $686 million out of the hands of low income families.
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MARGARET DOOLEY AWARD
- Patrick McCabe
- 27 July 2011
11 Comments
Ignatius of Loyola and Michel de Montaigne both had privileged upbringings. But where Montaigne was committed to personal fulfillment, Loyala was devoted to service. I, too, had a privileged upbrining and education. I'm not yet sure whose example is best to follow.
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