Senate Poverty Report - A Lost Opportunity

Catholic Welfare Australia’s Executive Director, Frank Quinlan, said today the Government’s response to a major Senate report on poverty was a lost opportunity for the country’s battlers.

Mr Quinlan said the Senate Report, A hand up not a hand out: Renewing the fight against poverty, provides a blueprint for the battle against poverty in Australia, but all 95 of the Committees’ recommendations were dismissed.

“The Government’s refusal to commit to a national poverty strategy is very disappointing, especially at a time of record national prosperity,” Mr Quinlan said.

“As a community we have an obligation to help the most disadvantaged people.

“Poverty is not all about income. There are very obvious links between poverty and employment, education, changes in family circumstances, housing and health, adding to the hard times felt by many Australians.

“Over half a million people are still unemployed, and of these, more than 320,000 have been receiving Newstart for more than 12 months. More than one in five part-time workers would prefer to work longer hours.

“One in every six children aged 15-19 years are in neither full-time work nor full-time study. These teenagers will find it increasingly more difficult to enter the labour market in the future. Last year, 97.5 per cent of all new jobs required a degree or a diploma.

“Two out of every three children who need emergency accommodation are turned away every night.

“Nearly half a million adults are on waiting lists for public dental treatment, with some people waiting up to five years.

“The Report provides options to improve the plight of many Australians. But their future remains bleak without targeted funding and the political will to change the current situation,” Mr Quinlan said.

Catholic Welfare Australia provides social services to over a million people in Australia annually.

9 March 2006

CONTACT: Judith Tokley 0408 824 306/02 6285 1366