Division Description Changes — Bills — Social Services and Other Legislation Amendment (Extension of Coronavirus Support) Bill 2020; in Committee — 10th Dec 2020

Change	Division
senate vote 2020-12-10#12 Edited by mackay staff on 2021-01-02 11:43:46	Title Bills — Social Services and Other Legislation Amendment (Extension of Coronavirus Support) Bill 2020; in Committee Social Services and Other Legislation Amendment (Extension of Coronavirus Support) Bill 2020 - in Committee - Keep part unchanged Description ~~<p class="speaker">Louise Pratt</p>~~ ~~<p>The opposition opposes division 2 of part 1 of schedule 1 in the following terms:</p>~~ ~~<p class="italic">(1) Schedule 1, Division 2, page 3 (line 12) to page 5 (line 25), to be opposed.</p>~~ The same number of senators voted for and against a [motion](https://www.openaustralia.org.au/senate/?gid=2020-12-10.173.1), which means it failed. The motion was "that division 2 of part 1 of schedule 1 stand as printed." To stand as printed is parliamentary jargon for remaining unchanged. This vote was technically unsuccessful but, because a majority is needed to actually make a change to the wording of the bill, that particular division remained part of the bill as passed by both houses. ### What does this bill do? According to the [bills digest](https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/bd/bd2021a/21bd032), the bill was introduced in order to: *** provide for the extension of the Coronavirus Supplement for Youth Allowance (Student and Apprentice) recipients from 1 January 2021 to 31 March 2021;** * prevent any extension of the Coronavirus Supplement and the temporary COVID-19-related waivers from the ordinary waiting period, newly arrived resident’s waiting period and seasonal work preclusion period beyond 31 March 2021; *** provide for the extension of the temporary COVID-19-related qualification rules for Youth Allowance (Student and Apprentice); * remove provisions relating to the COVID-19-related liquid assets test waiting period and assets test waivers (these waivers ended on 25 September 2020);** * allow for specific provisions of social security law to be temporarily modified by the Minister by legislative instrument in response to the economic and social impacts of COVID-19 until 31 March 2021 (or 16 April 2021 for some of the provisions); * introduce a discretionary power under the Social Security Act 1991 and the Veterans’ Entitlement Act 1986 assets tests to extend the temporary absence provisions used in relation to determining a person’s principal home where an individual is unable to return to Australia, for reasons beyond their control, within the allowable absence period; and *** allow for JobKeeper Payment information provided by the Australian Tax Office to Services Australia on or before 28 March 2021 to be used after that date.** <p>We just need to be clear, Senators—through you, Madam Chair—about what this amendment does. We've had a significant debate, here and now, about the fact that this minister says that it is beyond her authority, that she wants the commission and the trust of the parliament, that she only wants to take action that she is allowed to take by the parliament and that too much discretionary power is no good. That is of course a principle that we can accept, apart from the fact that this government stubbornly refuses to increase the rate of the JobSeeker payment. It's all very well to say, 'We need more parliamentary oversight on these issues,' and, 'I don't want to be able to exercise too much discretion to give money to people in the course of this pandemic.' I would be the first to admit that this amendment wouldn't be necessary if the government just got on and raised the rate of JobSeeker. I put the question.</p> ~~<p class="speaker">Anne Ruston</p>~~ <p>I want to make it very clear that what this amendment seeks to do has nothing to do with what Senator Pratt just alluded to: that it is somehow for me to increase the rate of JobSeeker. That is not what this amendment does. What it seeks to do is give me the power in relation to the JobSeeker supplement and it gives me the power in relation to other measures that sit around that, such as the taper rate for partner income, accessibility for different eligibility categories to be able to get access to payments and the income-free area. It does not address the rate of JobSeeker.</p> ~~<p class="italic">The CHAIR: The question is that division 2 of part 1 of schedule 1 stand as printed.</p>~~

~~Louise Pratt~~
~~The opposition opposes division 2 of part 1 of schedule 1 in the following terms:~~
~~(1) Schedule 1, Division 2, page 3 (line 12) to page 5 (line 25), to be opposed.~~
The same number of senators voted for and against a [motion](https://www.openaustralia.org.au/senate/?gid=2020-12-10.173.1), which means it failed. The motion was "*that division 2 of part 1 of schedule 1 stand as printed.*" To stand as printed is parliamentary jargon for remaining unchanged.
This vote was technically unsuccessful but, because a majority is needed to actually make a change to the wording of the bill, that particular division remained part of the bill as passed by both houses.
### What does this bill do?
According to the [bills digest](https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/bd/bd2021a/21bd032), the bill was introduced in order to:
* *provide for the extension of the Coronavirus Supplement for Youth Allowance (Student and Apprentice) recipients from 1 January 2021 to 31 March 2021;*
* *prevent any extension of the Coronavirus Supplement and the temporary COVID-19-related waivers from the ordinary waiting period, newly arrived resident’s waiting period and seasonal work preclusion period beyond 31 March 2021;*
* *provide for the extension of the temporary COVID-19-related qualification rules for Youth Allowance (Student and Apprentice);*
* *remove provisions relating to the COVID-19-related liquid assets test waiting period and assets test waivers (these waivers ended on 25 September 2020);*
* *allow for specific provisions of social security law to be temporarily modified by the Minister by legislative instrument in response to the economic and social impacts of COVID-19 until 31 March 2021 (or 16 April 2021 for some of the provisions);*
* *introduce a discretionary power under the Social Security Act 1991 and the Veterans’ Entitlement Act 1986 assets tests to extend the temporary absence provisions used in relation to determining a person’s principal home where an individual is unable to return to Australia, for reasons beyond their control, within the allowable absence period; and*
* *allow for JobKeeper Payment information provided by the Australian Tax Office to Services Australia on or before 28 March 2021 to be used after that date.*
We just need to be clear, Senators—through you, Madam Chair—about what this amendment does. We've had a significant debate, here and now, about the fact that this minister says that it is beyond her authority, that she wants the commission and the trust of the parliament, that she only wants to take action that she is allowed to take by the parliament and that too much discretionary power is no good. That is of course a principle that we can accept, apart from the fact that this government stubbornly refuses to increase the rate of the JobSeeker payment. It's all very well to say, 'We need more parliamentary oversight on these issues,' and, 'I don't want to be able to exercise too much discretion to give money to people in the course of this pandemic.' I would be the first to admit that this amendment wouldn't be necessary if the government just got on and raised the rate of JobSeeker. I put the question.
~~Anne Ruston~~
I want to make it very clear that what this amendment seeks to do has nothing to do with what Senator Pratt just alluded to: that it is somehow for me to increase the rate of JobSeeker. That is not what this amendment does. What it seeks to do is give me the power in relation to the JobSeeker supplement and it gives me the power in relation to other measures that sit around that, such as the taper rate for partner income, accessibility for different eligibility categories to be able to get access to payments and the income-free area. It does not address the rate of JobSeeker.
~~The CHAIR: The question is that division 2 of part 1 of schedule 1 stand as printed.~~