Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy) Share this | Hansard source

The government opposes Senator Rice's motion to disallow these instruments under the Social Security (Administration) Act 1999. These instruments are required to ensure that existing income management participants have uninterrupted access to income management until such time as they either choose to move to enhanced income management or otherwise lose legibility for the program. The legislative instruments specify the locations in which the disengaged youth, long-term welfare payment recipient, child protection and supporting-people-at-risk measures of income management operate.

The government is committed to working with communities on what comes next, with a focus on jobs, economic opportunity and better services. We remain mindful that some First Nations peoples and other stakeholders have called for a measured approach to reforming income management. Decisions impacting First Nations people must be made in partnership with them. To demonstrate our government's commitment to ongoing and meaningful consultation on the future of income management, these instruments have been made for an appropriate amount of time that will enable community based consultation on the future of income management to be completed and decisions made on future reforms. We have heard that any further reform needs to reflect the complex needs of participants and to mitigate any disruption to the ability to manage their money. We're also committed to consulting with communities and to working in partnership with First Nations people to consider what the future of the program looks like.

The three income management legislative instruments will operate through to 1 July 2026. This will allow time for genuine consultation to occur and for further decisions to be made by government on longer-term reform to income management.