Scott Morrison’s first message to the people of Australia after being anointed Prime Minister was “we’re on your side”. It was a welcome change in message after he had previously used the term "taxed and the taxed-nots" as federal treasurer to describe the social security system.

Aaccording to community groups, delays are increasingly common for all sorts of Centrelink payments.

The change in language is particularly welcomed by financial counsellors, who work with some of the most vulnerable people in the community, advising them of their rights and options when they are in financial difficulty. Each and every working day, they hear distressing stories – of people struggling to pay for the basic necessities of life; of having to choose between buying food or paying the electricity bill; of paying the rent or fixing the car, which is the only way they can get to work.

But after being involved in some recent cases involving social security payments, it has become clear to me that it is more than just the language that is going to need to change. Recent reports pointing to a $6.3 billion reduction in the amount spent on social security and welfare last financial year, with family tax benefit payments alone down $790 million, have only served to reinforce this point.

I am also left wondering whether our federal MPs are aware of the treatment of vulnerable people that lies behind the ‘'savings’’; and whether they are aware of just how loaded the system is against people who are vulnerable – financially and emotionally.