Brotherhood Comment April 2005

ISSN 1320 8632A REGULAR UPDATE FROM SOCIAL ACTION AND RESEARCHApril 2005Doing things differentlyPolicies to end persistent povertyOn 31 March, the Brotherhood’s Executive Director, Tony Nicholson, spoke at the opening plenary session of the Sustaining prosperity: new reform opportunities for Australia conference at the University of Melbourne. This article is based on his speech.In the last two decades, after a Like other measures, the HILDA poverty, suggesting that those in shaky start, we’ve gained a better data doesn’t include the homeless. poverty may move into low-paid understanding about how to At the last census, the Australian work but then lose their job and effectively manage a deregulated Bureau of Statistics counted over move back into poverty again. economy. The central bank and 100,000 homeless. Most were in other policy makers are now the first third of their working That said, it highlights one better placed to keep interest lives. About half were actively important fact: our society is still rates and inflation down. in the labour market. I challenge producing a hard core of people in any one to suggest they are not persistent poverty, and we need to Whilst we are not yet as advanced experiencing persistent poverty. direct much of our effort to helping in dealing with the social If we’re to use HILDA data them lift themselves out of it.consequences of a deregulated to measure the persistence of economy, we are beginning to poverty it ...