More migrants on DPB and Sickness benefits

Media release
MORE MIGRANTS ON DPB AND SICKNESS BENEFITS

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Department of Labour research shows that despite the percentage of migrants relying on benefits dropping, an increasing proportion are going on DPB or sickness benefits.

According to welfare commentator, Lindsay Mitchell, "Because the research is confined to those beneficiaries whose residence was approved on or after 1 July 1997 ( thereby excluding other beneficiaries who had immigrated earlier) it has some limitations. In order to make meaningful observations the researchers looked at the uptake in each year from 2001 to 2006 confining it further to those who had been approved for residence in the previous two years."

"These figures showed that the number receiving the DPB rose from 2% in 2001 to 10% in 2006. Receipt of the sickness benefit rose from 1% in 2001 to 8% in 2006. Unemployment was steady over the 6 year period."

"At the end of June 2006 there were 11,366 recent migrants receiving benefits. 1,591 were on the DPB and 2,160 were on a sickness benefit. 5,569 were on an Emergency Benefit . These numbers exclude beneficiary migrants whose residence was approved before 1 July 1997."

"The residence category of recent migrants shows, of those whose residence was approved in the past two years and are currently on benefit, 8 % were approved in the Skills/Business stream, 36 % in the Family Sponsored stream and 56 percent in the International/ Humanitarian stream.