DARWIN - 9 March 2021

Scott Morrison is just weeks away from cutting JobKeeper and ripping vital support from thousands of Darwin and Palmerston workers and 750 businesses in the Solomon electorate.

Local Labor MP Luke Gosling has warned the JobKeeper transition must be based on what's really going on in the local economy, not an arbitrary deadline at the end of March.

“The Prime Minister’s JobKeeper cuts risk leaving too many people in our local community behind,” Mr Gosling said.

“Our recovery from the deepest recession in a century risks being longer because Scott Morrison is pulling support from some sections of our local economy too quickly.”

“Local people in the Top End deserve a comprehensive jobs plan to support local businesses and workers in the recovery.

“Local businesses, including those in the tourism industry, need targeted assistance to continue until the economy rebounds and they can get back on their feet.”

Abolishing JobKeeper at the end of the month will impact more than one million workers and half a million businesses across the country, including 2,338 workers in Darwin and Palmerston.

Labor pushed for wage subsidies in the first place because it was the right thing to do.

With more than two million Australians searching for a job or more hours, the Morrison Government has no real plan to grow our local economy.

Instead, its cuts to JobKeeper, cuts to wages, and cuts to superannuation will make things worse, not better.

Labor is on the side of working families in Darwin and Palmerston – fighting COVID-19, while also fighting to build an economy that is stronger and fairer after the pandemic than it was beforehand.

Luke Gosling OAM MP