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More than 33,000 Territorians pushed back to poverty after JobSeeker cuts, according to NTCOSS report

MORE than 33,000 Territorians will be back living below the poverty line after JobSeeker payments were recently slashed, according to a new report.

MORE than 33,000 Territorians will be back living below the poverty line after JobSeeker payments were recently slashed, according to a new report.

The NT Council of Social Service’s latest cost of living report shows the JobSeeker reduction is expected to cut roughly $10m a fortnight from the NT economy, with 33,835 Territorians currently relying on the support payments.

Today marks one week since the $550 supplement was reduced to $250 a fortnight.

This means the total payment will be cut from $1100 a fortnight to about $800.

The poverty line for a single adult in Australia is $914 a fortnight.

NTCOSS policy adviser Jonathan Pilbrow said the ­impact of these income cuts will particularly be felt in the Territory’s most remote and disadvantaged areas where cost of living pressures have been historically high and remain so.

There were long lines of people outside of the Centrelink office in the Darwin CBD during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March. Picture: Katrina Bridgeford
There were long lines of people outside of the Centrelink office in the Darwin CBD during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March. Picture: Katrina Bridgeford

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“The coronavirus supplement provided a strong safety net during the height of the pandemic, lifting people out of poverty,” he said.

“In the current fiscal environment in the NT, coupled with high living costs, it is ­imperative that there is a ­permanent increase in the base rate of JobSeeker, and associated payments, so that Terri­torians experiencing vulnerability are not forced back into poverty.

“The federal electorate of Lingiari will see a loss to the economy of roughly $7m per fortnight, particularly impacting rural, regional and remote populations, with around $3m per fortnight to be lost in the Solomon electorate.”

It comes after unemployment figures for August showed the NT’s unemployment rate fell from 7.4 per cent to 4.2 per cent.

However, NT Chamber of Commerce chief executive Greg Ireland has warned unemployment will likely rise again soon, following the recent cuts to JobKeeper.

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Older Australians and women have been making up a bigger share of JobSeeker ­recipients, according to new analysis released by the federal Parliamentary Budget Office.

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Original URL: https://www.ntnews.com.au/news/northern-territory/more-than-33000-territorians-back-in-poverty-after-virus-supplement-cut-says-ntcoss-report/news-story/424809d597798959cda1785a832606b4