The Coalition is facing fierce backlash after unveiling a plan to restrict more than a dozen Centrelink payments and social services to Australian citizens only, effectively blocking new migrants from accessing support such as the age pension, JobSeeker, the parenting payment and the NDIS.
Opposition Leader Angus Taylor announced the proposal during his budget reply speech, arguing that welfare should go only to “those who have built and contributed to our country.” He claimed the policy would save “many billions” and suggested some payments could currently be accessed with “little or no waiting period.”
But welfare advocates say the Coalition’s claims distort reality and risk fuelling harmful stereotypes.
ACOSS CEO Dr Cassandra Goldie said it was “wrong to imply that non‑citizens get equal access to social security,” noting that many people lawfully living in Australia including asylum seekers are already denied income support and often barred from working. She accused the Coalition of once again using vulnerable people as a “political punching bag” to stoke fear and division.
Goldie also drew a sharp line between the proposal and the Coalition’s past controversies, saying the architects of the illegal Robodebt scheme were now “fuelling nasty, false, racist stereotypes in our communities.”
The Coalition’s plan has intensified debate over migration, welfare access and social cohesion and is likely to remain a flashpoint as the political contest over the federal budget continues.
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