The Social Services Minister Scott Morrison has released the much anticipated Welfare Reform report headed by Patrick McClure AO.
DSP (Blind) is not mentioned in the report. The report recommends that the new Supported Living Pension be means tested which DSP (Blind) is not. The Minister has also said that no one will have a reduction in their rate of payment.
In a welcome shift of focus to addressing the unemployment issue for people with a disability, the report recommends a Jobs Plan to get more people with disability into employment.
The proposed Jobs Plan includes:
- employment targets for the Australian Public Service
- a national awareness-raising campaign that tackles attitudinal barriers and informs employers about the range of services and supports available to assist them to employ people with disability and industry awards to recognise best practice
- a leaders group comprised of disability sector, business and government to develop practical strategies
- government and business procurement from organisations which employ people with disability or mental health conditions
- an Employment Covenant to include guaranteed jobs, access to training, recruitment and job matching services, post-placement support and employer support.
Vision Australia continues to advocate for a number of these employment initiatives with the Commonwealth and State Governments.
The report was commissioned by former Minister Kevin Andrews in 2013, and Vision Australia joined with more than 220 organisations in responding to the interim report in August 2014. To see our response which is cited in the final report please visit http://www.visionaustralia.org/about-us/public-policy/working-with-government/proposed-changes-to-social-security-for-people-with-a-disability
Minister Morrison said “The Government will consider the report’s recommendations and will make further decisions on these commencing with the 2015-16 Budget, and as part of a longer term vision of Australia’s welfare system.” It is hoped employment opportunities for people with disability will be a priority in this year's Federal Budget to deliver long term savings to taxpayers and individual and family benefits to people with a disability.
The report provides recommendations for a simpler approach to welfare and income support, with a strong focus on employment. The four pillars of the report are:
- Simpler and sustainable income support system including streamlining current various payments and allowances
- Strengthening individual and family capability – including providing incentives for people to go into employment
- Engaging with employers – including setting targets for employment of people with a disability in the public sector and working with the private sector
- Building community capacity – including how the philanthropic sector can help build a ‘civil society’.
In terms of changes that may affect our community, the report authors and the Minister have confirmed that in transitioning from the old to the new system, no one will have a reduction in their rate of payment.
The two key income supports expected in the future to cover people currently on a Disability Support Pension include:
- Supported Living Pension - a means tested pension for people over 22 who are permanently and severely restricted in their capacity to work in the open labour market. The definition of ‘permanence’ will relate to how long an individual is limited in their capacity to work, not the permanence of the impairment itself. An individual may have a severe and permanent impairment but this may not lead to permanent limitations on their capacity to work. It would be available for people with disability and an assessed work capacity of less than eight hours a week.
- Tiered Working Age Payment - a means tested payment for adults expected to work now or in the future. It should be the primary payment for people of working age, with three tiers to reflect the varying capacities of individuals. The Upper Tier would be for people with disability with a limited capacity to work, who, as a result of this limited capacity, are more likely to stay on payments for some time. The Middle Tier would be for people with moderate capacity to work and/or those with dependent children or dependent young people. This includes people with disability and an assessed capacity to work of 15 and 29 hours per week. The Foundation Tier is for people with full capacity to work or study full time.
In addition to income support, the report recommends there should be four (4) income supplements in the new system for clearly defined purposes that have specific extra costs. The range of supplements would be as follows:
- Housing to assist with the costs of rental accommodation
- Child and Family to assist with specific extra costs related to children
- Education to assist with specific additional costs of children and young people, when they need to live away from home to work or study
- Carer and Disability to assist in caring for children and adults with disability or people who are frail and aged.
The report states “In the new system, it should be easier for recipients to understand how their income support payments will be withdrawn as hours of work increase… This would ensure that income support recipients are able to easily calculate how much they would gain from entering employment or increasing their hours.”
Vision Australia will continue to represent the views of people who are blind or have low vision to ensure there is an adequate safety net for people with a disability and that future employment initiatives can have maximum impact for people with blindness.
To access the Executive Summary and full report go to the following link - https://www.dss.gov.au/our-responsibilities/review-of-australias-welfare-system