Welfare to Work and Its Regional Effects

Many single parents and people with disabilities who apply for social security payments after 1 July 2006 will be affected by the Government's Welfare to Work legislation, passed by the Parliament late last year. The changes include new activity requirements, greater investment in employment assistance services to help people get work, and a compliance and penalty regime for people who fail to meet the new requirements. This paper deals with another major change applying from 1 July: reductions in the level of social security payments received by many single parents and people with disabilities.