Julia Gillard got a taste yesterday:
"JOURNALIST: Could you live off the employment benefit of $32 a day?Tip- prepare for it, or raise Newstart.
JULIA GILLARD: I think life is very tough for people who are on Newstart, and the thing most people desperately want if they are on Newstart and they’ve lost their job, is to get back into the employment market and get another job. That’s why we’ve announced a series of programs and policies to help support Australians to get work.
Clearly our economic stimulus is about supporting Australian jobs. Our package of nearly $300 million to give more intensive employment assistance to workers who find themselves redundant is about supporting people back into work. Our Securing Australian Apprenticeships package is about helping apprentices who find themselves without a job midway through training to get that all important next job so they can finish their apprenticeship. The Compact with Young Australians that the Prime Minister announced out of COAG very recently is also about supporting young people in this period, whilst the global recession hits our nation and hits Australian jobs.
JOURNALIST: But would it be nearly impossible to live off that sort of money, $32 a day?
JULIA GILLARD: We’ve said our focus, and the best thing you can do for someone who’s lost a job, is to help them find a way back into a job. We are doing that through the employment services measures I’ve announced, as well as companion training measures that the Government has also announced."
