The government has been forced to defend an abrupt Budget backflip on its one-off energy assistance payment. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg dropped a significant surprise this morning, announcing he would extend the payment to recipients of the Newstart unemployment benefit. The policy, designed to help 3.9 million Australians pay their power bills, will give $75 to singles and $125 to couples before July. RELATED: Millions of Australians to get one-off payment The change announced this morning was not in the Budget papers, which specified who would qualify for the payment. Recipients of the age pension, carer payment, disability support pension, parenting payment, veterans’ service pension, veterans’ income support supplement and war widow pension were all listed. Newstart recipients were not. But earlier today news.com.au confirmed the payment would be extended to them. RELATED: What the Budget means for you RELATED: How much money you’ll get from the tax cuts The original policy, as listed in the Budget, cost $284 million. The version that passed the House today, with Newstart recipients added, cost $365 million. Labor pounced on the change during Question Time, using it to suggest the Budget was already “falling apart”. “This morning, less than 24 hours after delivering the Budget, the government caved into Labor pressure and backflipped on energy payments for thousands of vulnerable Australians, blowing an $80 million black hole in the Budget,” Bill Shorten said. “Doesn’t this just confirm, after six years of cuts and chaos, this Budget is nothing but a con that has already fallen apart?” “The performance in the Budget over the last 12 months means that we are $10 billion better off this time this year than we were at the time we handed down the last Budget,” Scott Morrison replied. “And we believe that if we are in that position where we have outperformed on a Budget, and we have been able to deliver a better financial outcome, then we should take the opportunity to ensure those that need it most are given the opportunity to ease their cost of living pressures.” The question was re-asked and re-answered in similar fashion several times. Question Time was also marked by a, shall we say, colourful answer from Mr Morrison, in which he surprised the House with an impression of the Sacha Baron Cohen character Borat. It came amid an otherwise routine condemnation of Labor’s climate change policies. “They want carbon credits from Kazakhstan. That is the policy of forcing businesses to shell our $36 billion that they could spend on increasing wages, they could spend on creating jobs, investing in businesses. But no, the Labor Party wants $36 billion to go to foreign carbon traders,” he said. “In Kazakhstan, I am sure they are pleased about this. They are thrilled about this. Some may call this is a carbon tax. I call it the Borat tax, with carbon credits for Kazakhstan. “I know what Borat would think of the Labor Party’s thoughts on carbon trading policies. Very nice, very niiiiiiice!” That isn’t a typo, he really did say it like that. You can watch the sitting Australian Prime Minister’s Borat impression here. Just be thankful he didn’t wear the mankini. . @ScottMorrisonMP: Over in Kazakhstan, I'm sure they're absolutely thrilled about this. Some call it a carbon tax, but I call it the Borat tax. I know what Borat would think of Labor's policies on emissions reduction... ... 'Verrrrry Niiiiice' MORE: https://t.co/ykweMevBOK pic.twitter.com/khTrHUx2gU — Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) April 3, 2019 Anyway, back to the Budget. As recently as 9pm last night, Mr Frydenberg was on TV confirming Newstart recipients would not be eligible for the Energy Assistance Payment. He had completely reversed direction by the time he appeared on ABC radio this morning. “Let’s talk about those on welfare. For those on Newstart, it’s nothing extra. They've had nothing for nearly three decades,” host Sabra Lane said. “Well, a couple of things. Firstly, the energy supplement will be extended to people on Newstart,” Mr Frydenberg responded. “It will be?” Lane asked, taken aback. “It will be,” he confirmed. “Is that a last-minute decision?” she asked. “That is something that the government has taken as a decision, and there will be other people who also receive payment,” Mr Frydenberg said. Lane asked whether the policy shift was a “tacit acknowledgment” the government had not done enough for Newstart recipients. “No, what we have done is ensure that people can have their cost of living pressures — see, people who are on a disability support pension or people who are on an aged pension, or a parenting payment or carers payment or veterans payment, they’re the ones who were targeted with this $125,” Mr Frydenberg responded. “Now we’re extending it to Newstart and others, but they’re different types of payments. “You see, the vast majority of people on Newstart move into a job and off that plan in 12 months. Newstart is also indexed twice a year, and the people who are on Newstart tend to also be on other government payments, whether it’s the Family Tax Benefit or a parenting payment or something.” The government had faced strong criticism for initially excluding Newstart recipients from the payment. Earlier this week it said the policy was “limited to those who don’t have the opportunity to work to earn additional income”. Perhaps the most vocal critic was the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS), an advocacy group for disadvantaged Australians. ACOSS CEO Cassandra Goldie told news.com.au Mr Frydenberg’s announcement this morning was not enough. “People on Newstart shouldn’t have been excluded in the first place, and the one-off payment of $75 is a pittance compared to the high end tax cuts that mean more than $11,000 extra a year for people on more than $200,000 once they’re in place,” Ms Goldie said. “What people on Newstart — $15,000 per year — really need is an urgent, ongoing increase, after 25 years. “The energy bills will keep coming and this one-off payment of $75 will do nothing to support people to get through tough times while they look for suitable paid work.”<doc-sep>The 2019 budget is expected to deliver tax relief that will make the average Aussie's better off. Also likely is funds for education a surplus that is better than expected. The 2019 budget is expected to deliver tax relief that will make the average Aussie's better off. Also likely is funds for education a surplus that is better than expected.... A quarter of Australia’s eligible voters can expect a one-off payment to help cover the cost of power bills in Tuesday’s federal Budget. An Energy Assistance Payment — $75 for singles and $125 for couples — will be paid into the bank accounts of 3.9 million veterans, carers, single parents, aged pensioners and people receiving the disability support pension before July, News Corp reports. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said it would particularly support older people on the age pension. He said the government understood cost-of-living pressures were a real challenge for many. “This is why we have worked hard to deliver a strong economy and a balanced budget so we can deliver this assistance,” he told News Corp. The measure, first put to Cabinet by then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull last August, will cost $285 million. Speaking on the Today show this morning, Mr Frydenberg said the payments recognised that Aussies were doing it tough. “This is acknowledgment that there are cost-of-living pressures and this support is going to go to around four million Australian, pensioners, aged pensioners and those on the disability support pension, people who are on care payment, single parents payments and veteran payments,” he said. When challenged on whether the government should instead be focused on lowering power prices, Mr Frydenberg said the two approaches were “not mutually exclusive”. “This is money going to go into people’s pockets to help meet the cost of their next power bill. At the same time we are taking action to reduce energy prices,” he said. “Last year, we saw prices come down in July. On 1 January we saw standing offers come down by around 15 per cent and then from 1 July we are putting in place a default price … We have seen prices come down as a result of the actions we have taken. “We are underwriting new generation, we are building Snowy 2.0, we have more gas in the market and we have taken on the energy networks.” Mr Frydenberg denied the payments were a “cash splash”. “This is responsible targeted spending into key areas that lifts the productive capacity of the country,” he said. “We are all about creating jobs and our record shows we have delivered on our commitment to create more than a million new jobs ahead of schedule.”<doc-sep>The Coalition will offer one-off payments to nearly 4 million welfare recipients in Tuesday’s budget, a cash splash of $285m purportedly to help cover energy bills. The payments of $75 for singles and $125 for couples will go to 2.4 million pensioners, 744,000 disability pensioners, 280,000 carers, 242,000 single parents and 225,000 veterans and their dependents – provided legislation is passed by 1 July. The Australian Council of Social Service has blasted the Coalition for excluding people on the unemployment benefit, Newstart, from the one-off payment while Bill Shorten labelled it an “election con”. The treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, announced the one-off “energy assistance payment” on Sunday, as Labor warned the budget would be a “highly political document” and promised, if elected, it would reset after the election with a fresh mini-budget. The shadow treasurer, Chris Bowen, told the ABC’s Insiders program that Labor would deliver an economic statement between July and September to “reset the economic settings” and update forecasts before return to the normal budget cycle from May 2020. With Tuesday’s budget expected to show a return to surplus in 2019-20, the Morrison government is keen to use the economic statement as a springboard for re-election. It is expected to announce tax cuts for low and middle-income earners and an infrastructure package to bolster its stocks in key marginal seats. The 2019 budget papers roll off the presses in Canberra on Sunday in preparation for Tuesday’s budget. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian Frydenberg told Channel Nine’s Today program the budget would “ease the cost of living pressure, fund infrastructure that is going to bust congestion in our cities and unlock the potential of our regions and it is going to guarantee funding for the essential services of hospitals, schools, drugs on the PBS, [and] disability support”. The treasurer did not rule out further income tax cuts, promising taxes would “always be lower under the Coalition”, despite the fact Labor plans to double the income tax cut for 10 million Australians. The finance minister, Mathias Cormann, told Sky News the energy payment “will give cost of living pressure relief to pensioners and eligible welfare recipients and it will help them meet the cost of their power bills”. The Acoss chief executive, Cassandra Goldie, accused the Morrison government of “ignoring the people who are doing it the hardest” on Newstart. “This one-off payment excludes people on the lowest incomes and pales in comparison to the ongoing benefits to be reaped by those on high incomes from the Morrison government’s existing high-end tax cuts worth billions.” Shorten told reporters in Melbourne that the payment – worth $1.45 a week – was “better than nothing, but it’s not an energy policy … it’s an election con”. News Corp reported the proposal was first put forward under the former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull and was originally going to be part of his plans to reduce power prices before he was dumped. It repeats a one-off payment made in 2018 under a deal with Nick Xenophon. In the 2018 budget, the Coalition attempted to cut an energy supplement for new welfare recipients worth $365 a year for singles and $550 for couples but was forced to back down when the measure was blocked by the Senate. A spokesperson for the social services minister, Paul Fletcher, said: “The one-off payment is limited to those who don’t have the opportunity to work or earn additional income.” Cormann defended the Coalition’s record on power prices, arguing they were “much lower than they would’ve been if we hadn’t abolished Labor’s carbon tax” and lower than they would be under Bill Shorten’s 45% emissions reduction target in the electricity sector. Cormann pointed to the Coalition’s efforts to improve power prices through standard default pricing and to crack down on abuse of market power, a measure contained in the “big stick” legislation shelved until after the election. Bowen said although the budget was expected to return to surplus, the government had not taken “tough decisions” to improve the bottom line but rather ridden “a wave of very good international economic circumstances”. On income tax cuts, the shadow treasurer said the government “has a lot of catching up to do” to improve on Labor’s offering. “We have 75% bigger tax cuts than the government earned for every Australian who earns less than $125,000 a year – that’s 10 million Australians,” he said. Bowen warned that on Tuesday the Coalition would deliver “a campaign launch, not a budget”. He said history indicated the government would have to downgrade its heroic wage growth assumptions, because he said wage growth was now at “record lows”. On Saturday the government moved to lance another budgetary boil, announcing it had approved price rises for disability services, allowing $850 million more to be spent from the national disability insurance scheme in 2019-20. The Australian reported the government will push ahead with plans to shift unspent funds from the national disability insurance agency to the social services department, an accounting trick to allow it to boast of a larger surplus.<doc-sep>Four million Australians will again receive a cash handout from the Federal Government to help cover the cost of rising power prices when Treasurer Josh Frydenberg hands down the Budget on Tuesday. Key points: The handout, included in Josh Frydenberg's first Budget, will be $75 for singles and $125 for couples The handout, included in Josh Frydenberg's first Budget, will be $75 for singles and $125 for couples The announcement shows the Coalition's concern about power prices ahead of May's election The announcement shows the Coalition's concern about power prices ahead of May's election Shadow Treasurer Chris Bowen says Tuesday's Budget will double as a campaign launch for the LNP The one-off Energy Assistance Payment, worth $75 for singles and $125 for couples, will be delivered to age pensioners, people on the Disability Support Pension, veterans, carers and single parents before July. Mr Frydenberg denied the measure was a "cash splash" describing the payments as "responsible, targeted spending". "This is money [that's] going to go into people's pockets to help meet the cost of their next power bill," he told Channel Nine. The $285 million announcement will be included in Mr Frydenberg's first Budget, and shows the Coalition is deeply concerned about power price, despite its promises to bring them down. This same "one-off" payment appeared in the 2017 budget, under a deal struck by the Government to get then-independent senator Nick Xenophon's support for its company tax cuts. It also comes a year after the Coalition tried — and ultimately failed — to scrap the Labor-era Energy Supplement for new recipients, which is worth hundreds of dollars a year. The Treasurer said it was one of a number of measures in his first Budget that "will ease cost of living pressures", suggesting the Coalition was planning more handouts to lure voters ahead of the election. During a wide-ranging interview, Mr Frydenberg played down speculation the Budget was set to return to surplus in 2018/19 — a year ahead of schedule. "We have faced … a number of spending challenges, including the impact of the drought and the floods in Queensland, as well as, of course, extra GST payments to the states," he said. Labor leader Bill Shorten said the one-off payment was better than nothing, but would not address years of rising power prices. "$1.45 a week for 12 months is not an energy policy, it's an election con. Does anyone think you'd be getting this if you weren't six weeks before an election?" he said. "It shows that the Government knows that they don't have an energy policy but they want to pretend to have one." Labor's economic statement Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 13 minutes 52 seconds 13 m Shadow Treasurer Chris Bowen interviewed on Insiders Shadow Treasurer Chris Bowen has already dismissed Tuesday's Budget as a "highly political document" that would double as a campaign launch for the Coalition. He confirmed that, if elected, Labor would hand down its own mini budget later this year, outlining its spending priorities. "If we win, we will bring down a major economic statement in the third quarter of the year, which will in effect be the first budget of a Shorten Labor government," he told the ABC's Insiders program. "We need to reset the economic settings. "We need to update the forecasts with the new government in place, and then, of course, we would return to the normal budget cycle of budgets in May from 2020 onwards."<doc-sep>
Australian households are feeling the pain of increasing energy prices. The time has come to switch off, take control and start saving. Australian households are feeling the pain of increasing energy prices. The time has come to switch off, take control and start saving.... The government has been criticised for excluding “the people who are doing it the hardest” from its one-off payment to help Australians cover the cost of their power bills. Yesterday, the government announced it would spend $285 million in the budget to give a cash injection to 3.9 million Australians. The tax-exempt Energy Assistance Payment — $75 for singles and $125 for couples — will be deposited into the bank accounts of veterans, carers, single parents, aged pensioners and people receiving the disability support pension before July. RELATED: 3.9 million Australians to get one-off payment Critics say there is one key group missing from that list — recipients of the unemployment benefit, the Newstart Allowance. “The Morrison government is ignoring the people who are doing it the hardest,” said Cassandra Goldie, CEO of the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS). Ms Goldie contrasted the government’s one-off payment with its longer term plan to cut taxes. “This one-off payment excludes people on the lowest incomes and pales in comparison to the ongoing benefits to be reaped by those on high incomes from the Morrison government’s existing high-end tax cuts,” she said. “It means people on modest incomes will receive a once-only payment of $75, while people earning more than $200,000 a year are set to be $200 better off a week, every week. “It’s grossly unfair to give high income earners tax-cut handouts week after week, while those on modest incomes get a fraction of this as a one-off payment, and people on the lowest incomes miss out altogether.” A spokesperson for Families and Social Services Minister Paul Fletcher told news.com.au the one-off payment “is limited to those who don’t have the opportunity to work or earn additional income”. “The Energy Assistance Payment builds on a 2017-18 budget measure to pay a one-off Energy Assistance Payment to certain income support recipients, and extends the payment to carer payment,” the spokesperson said. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg was challenged on the energy payment when he appeared on Channel 9’s Today program yesterday. “You are going to be sending out cheques in the mail to help with the power prices. Isn’t that looking a little desperate?” political editor Chris Uhlmann asked him. RELATED: Treasurer faces tough questions on Today “This is acknowledgment that there are cost-of-living pressures, and this support is going to go to around four million Australians, pensioners and those on the disability support pension, people who are on care payment, single parents payments and veteran payments,” the Treasurer replied. “This is money going to go into people’s pockets to help meet the cost of their next power bill. At the same time we are taking action to reduce energy prices.” Mr Frydenberg said Australians had already seen their power prices fall as a result of the government’s actions, and cost pressures would be eased further by the implementation of a default price on July 1. He denied the one-off payment was an election year “cash splash”, instead describing it as “responsible targeted spending”. ACOSS has long been lobbying both major parties for an increase to Newstart, which has not increased in real terms for more than 20 years. Its approximately 700,000 recipients currently get $273 a week, or $39 a day. Last year a report by Deloitte Access Economics found raising Newstart would have a range of “prosperity effects” and lead to 12,000 more people being employed by the 2020-21 financial year, along with a rise in wages. “Newstart has shrunk as a share of average wages, median wages, the minimum wage and the age pension,” the report concluded. That means Newstart recipients have been slipping further and further behind. In theory, the payment is supposed to be temporary. But in truth, 46 per cent of its recipients stay on it for more than two years, and risk getting trapped in poverty. RELATED: Protesters implore Labor to increase Newstart Labor’s national conference in December attracted large protests from the Anti-Poverty Network, which demanded an increase to the unemployment benefit. Labor leader Bill Shorten has publicly acknowledged Newstart is “too low”, but he has not promised an immediate increase should he win power.