The Greens say that the Government’s reporting line dubbed the ‘DobSeeker’ is an abuse of power that will hurt the most vulnerable in our community. 

“This is all part of the sick obsession this Government has with blaming and demonising people for not having a job in the midst of a recession and a pandemic. 

“The Job Provider system (Jobactive) is already rife with bullying, harassment, of people being ignored or treated very poorly by their job providers and now the Government is empowering employers with the means to intimidate and bully Jobseekers.

Today is an extremely distressing day for the 1.5 million people on the JobSeeker and Youth Allowance payments who have now had confirmation that the Morrison Government has made the cruel decision to condemn them to poverty. 
 
$44 a day is not enough to live on. This will mean people going without meals, without medication, without the funds to pay for heating or cooling.
 
This should not be happening in a country as wealthy as Australia.
 
This is an appalling slap in the face for all those people trying to survive on Jobseeker.
 

The Government’s long overdue Evaluation of the CDC in Ceduna, East Kimberley and the Goldfields Region: Consolidated Report has been publicly released over a year and a half after it was due. 
 

The Greens say a so-called employment insurance scheme is an appalling idea and that Mr Morrison is being cruel to people on the Jobseeker payment, drip feeding potential plans for the JobSeeker payment through media leaks.

“This so-called insurance scheme would make an already appalling system worse, further entrenching poverty and homelessness”, Greens spokesperson on Family and Community Services Senator Rachel Siewert said. 

“This concept is based on the assumption that has been disproven time and again, that poverty is an incentive to finding work. 

The Greens say Mr Morrison must announce a permanent increase to the Jobseeker payment and guarantee that nobody is worse off under any new system.

“Mr Morrison is once again muddying the waters with a suggestion that the JobSeeker payment could be paid at a flat rate and targeted supplements abolished. A permanent increase to Jobseeker is the highest priority” Australian Greens spokesperson on Family and Community Services Senator Rachel Siewert said. 

MYEFO shows yet again that the Liberals are locking in inequality and damage from climate change, the Greens say.

“The economy continues to be underpinned by Government spending, with state governments’ investment in social housing and public transport responsible for a lot of the improved outlook," Greens Economic Justice Spokesperson Senator Nick McKim said.

"But wages growth has been revised down following the Government’s announcement that they will reduce public sector wage increases.”

 
The Greens welcome the announcement by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) to down-schedule cannabidiol (CBD) and enable the availability of low-dose CBD over-the-counter (OTC) in pharmacies.
 
"The TGA has scheduled low doses of medicinal cannabis but there are currently no products on the Australian market to meet that purpose", Greens spokesperson on Health Senator Rachel Siewert said. 
 

The Greens are calling on the Government to clearly articulate plans for the rollout of COVID-19 vaccinations.

The Greens have vowed to continue the community campaign to stop income management and the Cashless Debit Card for good.
 
“The campaign to stop the card is not over", Senator Rachel Siewert, Spokesperson on Family and Community Services said. 
 
This campaign has been strengthened with the ALP coming on board after initially supporting income management measures and Senators Lambie and Patrick taking the time to review the evidence and vote against the card last night in the Senate.
 

The Government has used the last sitting day of the year to condemn millions of Australians to live even further below the poverty line by cutting the Coronavirus supplement by a further $100 a fortnight.
 
Mr Morrison is the Grinch who is stealing Christmas from so many Australians and the opportunity to live with dignity while we go through a global pandemic and recession.