Picture: Alex Coppel Source: Herald Sun
- Singles could get higher dole payments
- Welfare groups pushing for an increase
- Jenny Macklin understood to support the push
DOLE payments to single people would be boosted by $50 a week under a plan being considered by the Gillard Government.
Welfare groups want the increase - costing $1.5 billion a year - to be included in the May budget.
They are also pushing for hose on the dole to be able to work longer hours and earn an extra $17 a week before any benefits were clawed back.
This option would cost a more modest $220 million.Currently someone on the dole can only earn $31 a week, less than two hours at the minimum wage, before they start losing benefits.
Welfare groups met with Employment Minister Bill Shorten's advisers late last year to discuss the options and are expecting further talks early this year.
The Minister, who is on holidays this week, is said to "be alive" to the issue.
Families Minister Jenny Macklin is also understood to be a supporter of the push. This is despite the fact she created a furore by claiming earlier this week she could live off the dole.
While she wouldn't comment on this matter yesterday she defended her $1,577 a day expenses bill explaining that as Minister for Indigenous Affairs she has to travel to remote indigenous communities.
As Minister for Disability Reform she travels across the country to meet with people with disability and their carers as she develops the country's first National Disability Insurance Scheme.
Around half, or $144,814 of her $290,000 expenses bill for the first six months of 2012 was for office, administrative and telephone costs, her office said.
The Department Education, Employment and Workplace Relations told a Senate inquiry September that increasing the dole for singles and couples and increasing the indexation rate would cost $4 billion a year.
However, if the rise was limited just to siongle people living independently the cost could be reduced to just $1.5 billion a year.
Welfare groups see this option as more achievable because of its lower price tag and they argue that it is single unemployed people who are the most destitute because they don't have the advantages of shared living costs.
Jenny Macklin refused to comment yesterday on whether she supported an increase in the dole.
Health Minister Tanya Plibersek said yesterday "it's very hard to live on an income support payment".
"I don't think anyone thinks it's easy to live on Newstart," Ms Plibersek told ABC radio on Thursday.
"The best thing we can do is help people get a decent job with decent pay and conditions."
The government understood the challenges of surviving on income support, which was why Labor had put extra money into age and disability pensions, and carers allowances, Ms Plibersek said.
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