Media

City of Adelaide is 10th council to support raising Newstart

15 November 2017

Will the LGA follow suit and vote 'Yes' this Thursday?

Anti-Poverty Network SA and SACOSS (SA Council of Social Service) congratulate the City of Adelaide which last night voted to support an increase to Newstart Allowance, the Centrelink payment for job-seekers.

Over the past three months, 10 SA Councils representing 580,000 South Australians have added their voices to the chorus of business, union, and welfare groups calling for Newstart to be raised.

Adelaide has joined the following 9 Councils that have advocated for a raise to Newstart: Clare and Gilbert...

Being Poor Costs More

16 October 2017

SACOSS Anti-Poverty Week Statement highlights 10 “poverty premiums” for low income South Australians

SACOSS is today releasing its 2017 Anti-Poverty Week Statement which highlights the “poverty premiums” paid by South Australians on the lowest incomes. These are the extra costs on those living in poverty that others with higher income or more resources can buy their way out of, avoid or minimise.

The SACOSS Statement gives examples of 10 poverty premiums in energy, telecommunications, banking, government charges, and in ordinary shopping. The...

Liberal’s energy plan: some good measures but not enough for low income people

10 October 2017

SACOSS welcomes some of the reliability and security measures in Steven Marshall’s energy plan, but we are concerned that the plan’s solar battery centrepiece delivers little benefit for the poorest South Australians.

SACOSS Senior Policy Officer Jo De Silva says, “The Liberal Party has today announced a $100 million Home Storage Subsidy Scheme but people on very low incomes cannot afford to install solar panels, and therefore won’t be able to take advantage of the $2500 subsidy.”

Rejecting 'tough on crime'? That's political bravery!

4 October 2017

Ross Womersley - CEO, SACOSS

With an election in the air, neither of the major parties wants to be in a position where the public can accuse them of being soft on crime. This is why the Opposition must be congratulated for having the courage to oppose the State Government’s tough new Bill for repeat offenders.

The Government’s response to a series of high-profile and tragic accidents caused by repeat young offenders was to seek harsher punishments and to treat children and young people as adults.

Over 100,000 South Australian households in housing stress: Report suggests rental costs could be state election issue

7 August 2017

The South Australian Council of Social Service’s latest Cost of Living Update released today utilises recent Census data to highlight the problem of housing affordability and includes a breakdown of consumer housing stress by state electorate.

Housing stress is where a household spends more than 30% of its income on housing costs and it is a key indicator of financial hardship and risk of homelessness.

SA still years behind in addressing digital disadvantage

1 August 2017

Data released today shows that South Australia still lags the nation in addressing digital disadvantage.

The 2017 Australian Digital Inclusion Index, published by RMIT, was launched today in Melbourne. It measures 8 aspects of digital inclusion, giving each of them a score out of 100.

The 2017 data shows that digital inclusion in South Australia improved by 2.4 points over the last year, but SA still has the lowest score for all mainland states and territories.

Census Data shows SA lags on home internet access

10 July 2017

& Premier’s electorate the most digitally disconnected in Adelaide!

A SACOSS analysis of recent Census data shows the Premier’s electorate of Cheltenham has the lowest rate of households accessing the internet in Adelaide.

But that’s by no means the only bad news for Jay Weatherill – as a whole South Australia lagged behind the national average in online connectivity. There was also a clear regional disadvantage with country areas faring worse than metro ones.

This new data shows:

SACOSS urges Libs to fix flawed Child Safety Bill should they form Gov in March

6 July 2017

SACOSS is deeply disappointment with the Legislative Council’s decision, made in the early hours of the morning, not to reject the Government’s Children and Young People (Safety) Bill. And we urge the Liberal Party to fix this flawed legislation should they form Government early next year.

Ross Womersley, SACOSS CEO, says, “With an election in March, we urge all parties to bring forward strong policy platforms in this arena and encourage the Liberal Party, should it have the opportunity to form government to commit to a thorough review of this whole area of concern...

If not a bank levy, then what?

29 June 2017

The big banks are lobbying against the State Government’s major bank levy, three crossbenchers (the Australian Conservatives, and John Darley) say they’ll oppose it, and the State Liberals are considering their position. But it is vital that all South Australians understand what is at stake.

Big funding shake-up for community orgs: Treasurer's good news for social services, sport, arts and environment