Media Releases

And citizens can also help with the heavy-lifting

Covid-19 continues to wreak havoc in SA with today’s figures showing a whopping 200,000 South Australians now out of work or looking for more work.

SACOSS in response is calling on the Federal Government to maintain and extend vital coronavirus supports, and is also asking those who haven’t taken a financial hit to consider doing their part by donating to local charities.

We are working together with our members, other SA human service peak bodies and the SA Government to ensure you have access to the latest trusted information and resources.

SACOSS welcomed today’s release of ESCOSA’s Draft Decision in relation to SA Water’s proposed plan for delivering water and sewerage services to customers from 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2024, noting that if implemented, it was almost certain to drive water prices down even further than had been projected in ‘Our Plan 2020’.

Ross Womersley, CEO of the SA Council of Social Service, said:

The South Australian Council of Social Service’s latest Cost of Living Update, released today, highlights the importance of insurance costs in household budgets, points to a long term trend of insurance prices rising at well-above the general inflation rate and raises concerns about the implications of un/under-insurance for vulnerable households.

The report found that:

The Councils of Social Service across the country have joined together to urge the Morrison Government to reinstate funding to the National Family Violence Prevention and Legal Services Forum (NFVPLS) the national peak body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander victims and survivors of domestic violence.

The National Family Violence Prevention and Legal Services Forum is vital to eradicating our country's shameful rates of domestic violence.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander survivors of domestic violence must be heard.

The South Australian Council of Social Service (SACOSS) has today congratulated the Australian Energy Regulator (AER) for its compliance and enforcement action against EnergyAustralia, in relation to alleged breaches of important consumer protections contained in the National Energy Retail Law and Rules.

SACOSS is particularly encouraged to see the enforcement of retailers’ obligations to offer and apply payment plans to customers who are struggling to pay their bills.

The South Australian Council of Social Service has welcomed the Senate Inquiry into Newstart hearings to be held in Adelaide this week and has called for the SA State Premier to follow the NSW Deputy Premier in urging his federal colleagues to reconsider their position on Newstart.

The Senate Inquiry is holding hearings in Elizabeth on Wednesday 30 October and will hear from local councils, leading South Australian charities, and most importantly, from people who have experience of trying to live on impossibly low payments while looking for work.

As public submissions closed on 2 October on the state government’s controversial land tax bill, SACOSS called on the government to stand firm in tightening aggregation provisions to prevent land tax avoidance.

SACOSS CEO, Ross Womersley said, “The proposed changes to the legislation to stop tax avoidance are good, sensible policy – both for fairness and to limit existing incentives that encourage investors to ‘crowd out’ low income and first-home buyers in the housing market.”

The South Australian Council of Social Services (SACOSS) reacted with a mix of concern and relief to today’s state budget. SACOSS was pleased the budget did not contain sweeping cuts to services which many in the sector feared, but there was a $360m reduction in departmental budgets as well as some specific funding cuts announced. These cuts will inevitably see services diminished in some areas.

SA/NSW Interconnector to go ahead following resolution of formal dispute process 

“The initial proposal promised a number of solutions; we had concerns about whether this proposal could actually live up to its promises,” Ross Womersley, CEO of SA Council of Social Service (SACOSS) said. “We wanted reassurances from ElectraNet that this project would provide stable, secure electricity for all consumers.”

Estimated combined cut of $687m over two years

The South Australian Council of Social Service has expressed alarm today at the further cuts to South Australia’s GST entitlements in last night’s Federal Budget, a cut which will almost certainly have dire consequences for the State Government’s own budget.

SACOSS is calling on the State Government to urgently look at state revenue measures, which will address this new revenue hole which threatens their ability to fund vital services.

The not-for-profit (NFP) sector is set to receive fairer funding terms and easier-to-use templates when applying for grants and procurement of services.

By standardising contract templates, NFPs will benefit by saving time and money on what was an inconsistent and often onerous process.

SACOSS has applauded the Essential Service Commission of South Australia’s (ESCOSA) Decision on reliability standards released today because it will help keep a lid on electricity prices.

“The Commission has listened to consumers who really don’t want to pay for overinvestment in reliability and too much for inconvenience payments either,” says Jo De Silva, SACOSS Energy Policy Lead.