Greens Leader Adam Bandt says today's announcement that the government will expand JobKeeper suggests lessons have not been learned from the first round of JobKeeper, meaning millions in need will continue to miss out.

“The Government has shown today how easy it is to expand eligibility,” Greens Leader, Adam Bandt, said today.

“While we welcome an expansion, this was surely an opportunity to fill the gaps that see millions of workers unfairly missing out on JobKeeper.

Scott Morrison’s pandemic payment announcement is a poor substitute for sick leave and doesn’t properly support the public health push to contain the coronavirus, said Greens Leader, Adam Bandt.

“Workers can only get this watered-down payment if they’ve been ordered to stay at home, so it won’t cover people who are experiencing symptoms but haven’t yet visited a doctor,” said Mr Bandt.

The Greens have said that the federal government must urgently support early learning and immediately provide relief for early childhood education and care (ECEC) in Victoria.

Senator Mehreen Faruqi, Australian Greens Education spokesperson, said:

“The current situation is untenable. The federal government should immediately extend JobKeeper for all early learning workers and provide free childcare with a guaranteed relief payment for services.

The Greens have described today’s Economic and Fiscal Update as a plan based on austerity and fantasy projections that will lead to ongoing high unemployment.

The figures released by the Treasurer today exposed the urgent need for debt-financed public infrastructure and public services such as ongoing free childcare that will help get us into full employment, not more tax cuts for the wealthiest fifteen per cent of income earners.

Greens Leader Adam Bandt and spokesperson on Family and Community Services Senator Rachel Siewert have responded to today's announcement that the government has agreed to Labor’s proposal to cut JobKeeper and JobSeeker payments, even as unemployment soars and the Covid outbreak continues in Victoria and NSW. 

This is being billed as an extension, but the reality for millions of Australians, many of whom are still under lockdown, is that this is a cut in vital income support.

Democracy should not be a victim of the pandemic.

We need a health-first approach if we are to have any chance of effectively eliminating community transmission of this virus. The advice of health experts must be heeded.

Democracy should not be a victim of the pandemic.

We need a health-first approach if we are to have any chance of effectively eliminating community transmission of this virus. The advice of health experts must be heeded.

Australian Greens Leader, Adam Bandt, has described the Morrison Government’s ideological determination to cut taxes for high income earners as ill-timed and irresponsible, and criticised Labor for backing the move.

The tax cuts would increase inequality in Australia:

As Melbourne goes back into stage 3 lockdowns, the Federal government is pulling the major childcare supports which played a positive role in the initial outbreak response. 

Dan Tehan’s announcement of a new semi-subsidy will risk the viability of many centres who will neither be able to return to normal operations, nor collect full income if parents keep their kids at home.

“The Government is tying itself up in knots. It would be far simpler and fairer to extend free childcare after 12 July,” Greens Leader, Adam Bandt said.

Greens Leader Adam Bandt has released new analysis showing that because pollution has increased so much since the Liberals repealed the carbon price, Australia’s emissions reduction targets would now need to be at least a 48% cut on 2005 levels by 2030 to be consistent with the Paris Agreement aim of keeping global warming well below 2 degrees. So much of the carbon budget has been spent that future governments will need to tighten their carbon belts even further, not relax targets as has been mooted.