The plight of Australians subsisting on Newstart is in the spotlight again during Anti-Poverty Week, but the Morrison government isn't budging in the face of widespread calls to lift the dole payment.
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"An increase in Newstart is certainly not on the books for the government," Social Services Minister Anne Ruston told Sky News on Monday.
She talked up government programs helping people to get into work and said there had been "a much more targeted approach to helping people deal ... with the safety net that Newstart provides for them".
The government's latest figures show the forecast "lifetime cost" of welfare has dropped by more than 10 per cent since June 2017, now estimated to be $5.7 trillion.
"Government initiatives have contributed to this improved lifetime cost of welfare including jobs growth and significant reductions in entries onto payments and decreases in persistency to payments," a briefing document from the prime minister's office says.
The St Vincent de Paul Society is one of the many groups calling for the rate of Newstart to be lifted, saying people on the $40-a-day payment struggled to afford the basics of food and electricity.
"Our social security system is meant to be a solution to poverty, not a cause of it," NSW branch chief executive Jack de Groot said.
St Vincent de Paul has highlighted the story of Pam Markiewicz, who found herself homeless and in need of the charity's support while on Newstart.
The 64-year-old doesn't yet qualify for the age pension but has found herself overlooked by employers.
"It's time the government realised that we're not bums," she said.
"Being on Newstart is very degrading. I'm treated like a bit of a scumbag, like I'm a drain on the government."
A Senate committee is examining the adequacy of Newstart payments but is not due to report until March.
Australian Associated Press
