Labor pours cold water on increasing jobseeker – leaving progressive voters scratching their heads

The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, left, pictured with prime minister Anthony Albanese, could not bring himself to say this week that the government was even considering a jobseeker increase. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

When the independent senator David Pocock helped the government pass its industrial relations legislation, among the many concessions he extracted was a new committee of poverty experts to advise on the adequacy of welfare.

This week the government released the commitee’s advice calling for a “substantial” increase to jobseeker, then immediately poured cold water on the prospect it would do so, citing its $24bn cost.