Victoria Budget 2020-21 supports post COVID recovery

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By SAT News Desk

MELBOURNE,24 November 2020: As Victoria moves towards the post-COVID Normal, it’s budget for 2020-21 presented today has set the tone for a “record investment to rebuild the state – and make sure Victorians recover too.”

At the heart of that effort is getting Victorians back into work. The Andrews Labor Government’s $49 billion Jobs
Plan aims to create 400,000 jobs by 2025 – 200,000 jobs by 2022.

Premier Daniel Andrews says, “A job is worth more than just a paycheque. A job means security and stability – for you and the people you love. It’s why the heart of this Budget is dedicated to creating new jobs and getting Victorians back into work.”

“There is no real recovery from this pandemic unless we face up to the deep cracks it’s exposed and do something about them. Victorians deserve nothing less.”

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This includes Jobs for Victoria, a $619 million investment to help those most impacted by the pandemic: women, young people, and Victorians without a formal qualification, but plenty of experience.

This includes $250 million to partner with employers to help cover the wages of up to 10,000 new workers. We’ll also make it easier to retrain, with $1 billion to support our skills sector, including an extra 80,000 Free TAFE and training places with courses for jobs that are in demand right now.

To help businesses that rehire staff, restore hours, and create new jobs, the budget provides a New Jobs Tax Credit. This tax credit will be available for two years, saving businesses a total of $836 million. It will also help support an estimated 9,400 people back into employment.

This Budget also will help build schools with $1.9 billion, expected to create more than 6,400 jobs across the state. Funding of $5.3 billion will make sure more Victorians have the security and stability of a home, building 12,000 new social and affordable homes.

Treasurer Tim Pallas says, “This is a Budget for our time – acknowledging the incredible damage that’s been done by this global pandemic, but also making a commitment to rebuild our state stronger and fairer.”

A media release from the Premier’s office says, “This pandemic has shown that many Victorians are forced to choose between their health and feeding their families. That’s why the Labor Government will develop a new Secure Work Pilot Scheme, providing up to five days of sick and carer’s pay at the national minimum wage for casual or insecure workers.

This year has shown us – nothing matters more than your health and the health of the people you love. It’s why this Budget delivers $2 billion to build new hospitals and upgrading existing ones.

We’ll also continue our work to fix our broken mental health system, with nearly $870 million to extend mental health services to more Victorians. This investment will deliver new beds, more staff, and dedicated one-on-one support for those most in need.”

“In order to help fund these investments, Victoria will make use of record low interest rates – borrowing now to ensure our state can rebuild sooner and stronger.

Because as we recover, our success must be measured not just by the wealth of our economy and but by the wellbeing of our people. This is a Budget to rebuild, recover, and make us stronger than before. This is a Budget that puts people first,” the media release says.

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Neeraj Nanda

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