The Shadow Minister for Work, Family and Community, Tanya Plibersek MP, has misrepresented my answer to a question in Parliament today.
Ms Plibersek asked me whether, under the welfare to work changes, a single mother with a seven-year-old child would be subject to penalties if she did not take a job because she could not find child care.
I responded that I understood the rules to be applied are those applied to Newstart Allowance. Under these rules, Centrelink decides whether a penalty applies to a job seeker who does not take up a job offer, and does not apply a penalty if the job seeker has a good reason for not taking the job.
This will continue to apply under the new arrangements. If no suitable child care is available, or the cost of care would result in a very low or negative financial gain from working, the parent will not be required to accept the job.