The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has just released its latest report card on child well-being in 41 rich countries. In particular, the report looks at the effects of the economic crisis on children…
Tony Abbott keeps appointing businessmen like Andrew Forrest, who have limited expertise in analysing evidence and developing social policy, to advise the government.
AAP/Nikki Short
The Creating Parity report on Indigenous employment and welfare, released last week by mining magnate Andrew Forrest, is in much the same vein as Tony Shepherd’s recent Commission of Audit. Forrest and…
Anyone who imagines most job seekers have it easy probably hasn’t been out of work recently.
Flickr/Florian Simeth
It turns out that the policies for under 30s in the federal budget in May were a precursor to a much wider set of changes affecting unemployed people across the board. These are just now coming to light…
Iain Duncan Smith: hardship, despair, and destitution.
Anthony Devlin/PA
On July 5, the Daily Mail mounted yet another attack on the pesky human rights folk who have the temerity to question the coalition government’s welfare agenda. The article, headlined “The Brazil Nut strikes…
While social services minister Kevin Andrews focuses on welfare spending data, there is precious little evidence for the efficacy of his policy approach.
AAP/Alan Porritt
The prime object of welfare reform should be to increase the well-being of people rather to reduce public expenditure. Good policy should be able to achieve both goals over the longer term. Too many current…
Many carers sacrifice their own careers and wellbeing so would welcome a helping hand back into quality work when the time is right.
Shutterstock/Lighthunter
Carers received relatively little attention in the interim report of the Review of Australia’s Welfare System. This was despite early media reports that the Carer Payment would be a target for reform…
Kevin Andrews and the government’s vision for welfare reform depends entirely on whether labour market opportunities will open up to those for whom it has previously been closed.
AAP/Gary Schafer
The interim report of the Review of Australia’s Welfare System, led by former Mission Australia CEO Patrick McClure, is a vexed piece of work. Much in it is commendable and even far-sighted, but there…
Moving some sole parents onto the lower Newstart payments has pushed up the numbers.
Alan Porritt/AAPIMAGE
Social services minister Kevin Andrews has targeted the Disability Support Pension and Newstart, the main payment for the unemployed, for reform, branding the current level of welfare as unsustainable…
In the UK today, there are sizeable inequalities in health – and sometimes that gap isn’t just about north versus south. In Stockton Tees in the north-east of England, for example, there’s a 15-year gap…
Many pensioners are living in homes that are too expensive for them, says the Grattan Institute’s John Daley, arguing adding the family home to the assets test for the age pension would spur on downsizing.
juicyrai/Flickr
Charis Palmer, The Conversation and Kylar Loussikian, The Conversation
The Australian Government should tighten the welfare system for older Australians, adding the family home to the assets test for the age pension and limiting tax concessions on superannuation contributions…
It seems the Coalition will expand the compulsory income management scheme, which has little evidence backing up its worth.
AAP/Dan Peled
For a brief moment, it looked as though the Coalition would be better than the ALP on welfare policy. It appeared that the new government would listen to evidence for policy changes in its newly retitled…
Team spirit isn’t what it once was in the UK.
Defence Images
Perceptions of how well most major British institutions are run have plunged over the past three decades. The 30th British Social Attitudes report, published today, reports decreases in public satisfaction…
The idea that mental health services are getting better is just smoke and mirrors.
Flickr/Erika Linds
Foundation essay: This article on the state of mental health services is part of a series marking the launch of The Conversation in the UK. Our foundation essays are longer than our usual comment and analysis…
Professor of Electrical and Electronic Engineering and Deputy Dean Research at Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology, The University of Melbourne