It Looks Like The Government Is *Finally* Going To Raise Newstart & It’s About Fkn Time

universal basic income

Well folks, it looks like the Federal Government has *finally* realised that nobody can live on the $40/day Newstart payment, with the higher “Job Seeker” payment likely to remain for at least the foreseeable future.

According to the ABC, the Federal Government is “unlikely” to reduce the payment back to the previous $40/day amount amid the economic crisis that has followed the coronavirus pandemic.

Josh Frydenberg, a man who should definitely *not* be trusted with money anymore, is believed to be confirming the increased unemployment payment in July’s mini-budget, which will detail the Morrison Government’s plan to recover in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic.

But don’t get too excited just yet because this doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll remain at the doubled rate it’s currently at. ABC sources claim the rate is likely to remain higher than the $40/day Newstart rate, however the government is yet to comment on exactly what that amount will be.

We’ll have to wait for the government to review all expenses (including *that* $60B oopsie) before we’ll see any change to the Job Seeker payment, but here’s hoping it’ll be increased in some capacity.

The decision is important to thousands of Australians on both the Job Seeker and Job Keeper payment, with the latter set to expire in September with minimal hope of it being extended.

As it currently stands, more than 1.64 million Australians receive the Job Seeker payment, but that number is set to jump substantially when the Job Keeper payment is eventually cut.

The current Job Keeper and Job Seeker payments are set to expire in September, with the rate returning to $40/day unless the government chooses to increase it.

The news comes as the Australia Bureau of Statistics recently announced that unemployment has risen to a whopping 7.1% amid the coronavirus pandemic.

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