17 March 2010 in Mayo News
RUDD GOVERNMENT BACKDOWN
ON YOUTH ALLOWANCE
The Liberal Party has succeeded in eliminating retrospectivity from the Rudd Governments changes to Youth Allowance legislation and created a pathway for regional and remote students to access the independent rate of youth allowance.
Under the Rudd Government’s original changes young people in rural and remote communities needed to find an almost impossible 30 hours of work a week for 18 months over two years to qualify for the independent rate of youth allowance.
After months of pressure from the Liberal Party however, the Rudd Government has backed down and over the next four years as many as 7600 students will receive assistance due to the changes.
Students living on Kangaroo Island will be able to access the allowance under previous rules and will be able to qualify by working 15 hours a week over two years or by earning $19,532 over an 18 month period.
While this is a positive result for the community, there will still be young people who may miss out in other regional areas. The Liberal Party is committed to addressing rural and regional inequality and will review the criteria immediately if elected.
The Liberal Party’s determination has paid off and is this is a good outcome for rural students on Kangaroo Island.