The Assistant Treasurer Senator Rod Kemp has rejected claims made by ACOSS today that the Federal Governments tax package has the potential to disadvantage poor people.
"ACOSS does not appear to understand its own research, which shows that welfare recipients will be better off under our tax package," said Senator Kemp.
"ACOSS has recently commissioned research by the Melbourne Institute which shows that for every category of welfare recipient, people will receive increases in pension which overcompensate for expected cost of living increases.
"The Government does not accept ACOSSs pessimistic assumptions, but even under ACOSSs worst case scenarios, all categories of welfare recipient end up better off under the Governments package.
"ACOSSs research uses an inflation assumption which is higher than Treasurys estimate of 1.9%, and includes Household Expenditure Survey results which have been questioned as to their statistical reliability.
"Even after these worst-case assumptions, in all eight categories the Governments four percent increase in welfare payments more than compensates for the expected increase in the cost of living.
"ACOSS should be intellectually honest and admit that their own research shows that their constituents will be better off under our package," said Senator Kemp.
(Attachment included)
Contact:
Penny Farnsworth
02 6277 7360
10/2/99