2020-10-19
The Greens condemn the Morrison Government for failing to include a gender lens in the Budget, instead leaving it to a non-profit women's organisation to do their homework for them.
"Women are once again mopping up after the Morrison Government by applying a gender lens to the Budget, something which should have been done by government itself," said Greens Leader in the Senate and spokesperson on Women, Senator Larissa Waters.
"The National Foundation of Australian Women's analysis released today unsurprisingly finds that when you don't apply a gender lens to budgeting, women miss out.
"NFAW found that by investing in the care economy - increasing employment and wages in the childcare, aged care and disability sector - GDP would increase by 1.64% by 2030 and women's workforce participation would be turbo-charged.
"This follows earlier analysis by the Australia Institute showing that more jobs would be created for both men and women if the government invested in health and education rather than championing male-dominated fields with the blokey recovery we have seen proposed to date.
“The 2020 Budget is bad for women. It has no new money for childcare, housing or frontline domestic violence services, the tax cuts are worth twice as much for men as women, and the women’s economic security statement is a mere 0.04% of the Budget.
"The embarrassing government talking points trying to claim roads as a win for women is reminiscent of Tony Abbott citing his top achievement as Minister for Women being repealing the carbon price so women would pay less when ironing.
"The Budget disproportionately helps men in a year that has disproportionately disadvantaged women, perhaps because only one woman sits on the Expenditure Review Committee.
"There has been no Women's Budget Impact Statement since Abbott axed it in 2014, and this year a hastily patched-together Women's Economic Security statement was released three hours after the Budget. Women are an afterthought to this government and it shows," concluded Senator Waters.