1 in 8 Australians living in poverty: report

Updated

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A report by welfare organisation the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) has found one in eight Australians is living in poverty.

ACOSS says that equates to more than 2.2 million people living below the poverty line in Australia and close to 600,000 of them are children.

The report provides the most comprehensive picture of poverty in Australia since 2006.

It shows people who are unemployed, children (especially in lone parent families), and people whose main source of income is social security payments, are the groups most at risk.

ACOSS says despite 20 years of economic growth, poverty has increased in Australia.

ACOSS chief Dr Cassandra Goldie says it is a national disgrace.

"This is the first time this figure has been counted in six years and it is deeply concerning to us that there is no reduction in the rate of poverty in Australia," she said.

"In fact it has slightly increased.

"In a wealthy country like Australia, this is simply inexcusable."

Dr Goldie says it is unacceptable that the Newstart payment has not been increased in almost 20 years and that the Government last week made cuts to payments for sole parents.

"Two-thirds of people on Newstart have been unemployed for more than a year and they clearly need more help than they are getting now from employment services," she said.

She says the Government's parenting payment cuts are disturbing, given the report shows almost 300,000 children living in poverty are with sole parents.

"There are almost 600,000 children living in families below the poverty line. About half of those children are in sole parent families, and one quarter of people in sole parent families are living below the poverty line," Dr Goldie said.

"This makes the Federal Government's recent cuts to payments for sole parents all the more disturbing.

"Under the changes passed in the Senate last week, over 100,000 sole parents on the parenting payment will be between $60 and $100 a week poorer from January 2013."

ACOSS is urging the Federal Government to commit to a national goal to reduce poverty.

It is calling for an increased investment in wage subsidies and training for the long-term unemployed, as well as initatives to ease housing cost pressures.

"It is simply unacceptable that so many people are still going without the basics and the sorts of opportunities the rest of us take for granted," Dr Goldie said.

"A wealthy country such as ours can and should do better to ensure that everyone is afforded an adequate standard of living.

"It is a fundamental human right."

Topics: poverty, welfare, federal-government, australia

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