Crestwood's_G said:
i am angry that some people are allowed to claim this and i am not because the only parent in my family supposedly earns more than 2 parents in another...
Centrelink takes means testing
very seriously. Perhaps the wrong income limit has been applied, there are a lot of people I know who fail means testing yet are still in need of assistance.
the money is meant to be spent on TAFE or uni...whereas the kid (its mostly teens who claim it) keep it to themselves and spend it on leisure...
No. The money is given to the students so they have money to live off while at TAFE or university. One who receives Youth Allowance might spend his/her money on groceries, or Youth Allowance + Rent Assistance on groceries, bills, and rent (though this is always never enough to pay every bill, and jobs are still needed). Youth Allowance is designed to give students who wouldn't be able to otherwise afford the costs associated with higher education a chance to study, get decent jobs, and again contribute back to the system with their income tax so they can give others a chance.
You're also using the irresponsibility of one person to judge everybody who has access to Youth Allowance. Centrelink gives people money, with the assumption that this money will be spent wisely. If it's not, and the customer needs more money, they will have to wait until the next pay. How this money is spent is not Centrelink's concern, however.
it is therefore assumed TAFE and uni is being paid for by their parents...so why give these people money when it is obvious they dont need it...
That's a big assumption. How are you sure this person is not spending his/her money on TAFE/uni? How are you sure this person doesn't have money left over, and is using that for a social life? While you may disagree completely with using Youth Allowance money for a social life, how are you so certain that this person is spending
all his or her money on going out?
thats 5000 dollars of mine and your tax dollars going to lazy arse kids who are spending uni money on petrol and going out with mates...
Youth Allowance on petrol? Last time I checked, people needed a way to get to and from university/TAFE. Thus spending Youth Allowance on petrol isn't "misuse" as far as I can tell. Do you expect this person to simply materialise in and out of university when required?
Also, five thousand tax dollars going to lazy arse kids? I'm certain that some Youth Allowance is spent this way. In fact, I'm sure there exist Centrelink customers who are doing their best to remain on Youth Allowance without any effort to finish what they are doing and just start working. However, I'm also sure that a large number, possibly the majority, or something would've been done about this long ago, are not only spending their Youth Allowances wisely, but are doing their best to finish their time at university as quickly as possible so they may find a job, and begin contributing tax dollars to pay for others who need the money.
give your opinions...and i also realise that this student allowance isnt always spent this way
Perhaps a change in Centrelink would be more desirable. Not the implementation of "you spend money where we tell you to" or "we spend money for you" as this would be a severe removal of human dignity to those involved, but stricter regimes for accessing such allowances.
Perhaps develop a HECS like system for Youth Allowance. The money students receive from the government in the form of Youth Allowance is accumulated on top of HECS-HELP, requiring the student to pay it back in the same way they pay back HECS-HELP/OS-HELP/FEE-HELP. That way "tax dollars" are simply loaned to students in the form of Youth Allowance, and they have the responsibility to pay this back in the same way they'd pay back their HECS-HELP debt.
I'm not an economist, though, so I can't see whether or not that'd work.
Miles Edgeworth said:
Maybe leave home hey then you qualify for it hey
Or he could get kicked out of home. Once he proves to Centrelink that he and his parent cannot live together, they'll ignore her completely in determining eligibility.