Senator RUSTON (South Australia—Minister for Families and Social Services and Manager of Government Business in the Senate) (14:32): I thank Senator Siewert for her question. The one thing that the Morrison-McCormack government is absolutely committed to is making sure that we support all Australians by providing a safety net for those people who find themselves without work. But, Senator Siewert, we recognise that we have been through a once-in-a-hundred-year crisis and that the impact of that crisis has been severe across our entire economy. That's why we put in place the coronavirus supplement and a raft of other measures to support Australians through this crisis. As part of that, we have made decisions on a regular basis about how much additional support we need to continue to put into the economy to make sure that we support Australians through this really difficult time. We put in place the coronavirus supplement back in March, and we continue to have that supplement in place. It continues in place at the moment for the three months to 31 December then it will remain in place from 1 January at a rate of $150— The PRESIDENT: Order! Senator Siewert on a point of order. Senator Siewert: Yes. I kept my preamble really short and I asked a pretty short question, so could I ask the minister, through you, Mr President, to get to my question, which was: is it government policy for people on the JobSeeker payment to live in poverty? The PRESIDENT: You're quite right: you had a short preamble. I'm listening carefully to the minister's answer and she is directly addressing the issue of that payment and the supplement, at least that's what I've heard. I've allowed you to restate the end of your question; I can't instruct her how to answer the question. Senator Ruston. Senator RUSTON: Thank you very much, Mr President. Senator Siewert would know very clearly that the absolute priority and policy of this government is to make sure that we work with the Australian economy and with the Australian public—with all Australians—to make sure that we have a strong economy which creates jobs so that those people who find themselves in a situation where they don't have employment have jobs created so they're able to get to work. We know, as you know, Senator Siewert, that people who are working have a higher standard of living than those who find themselves having to rely on welfare. But the most important thing we can do is support Australians through the appropriate policy settings that we have put in place through this once-in-a-century pandemic to make sure that that ongoing support reflects a very clear balance between supporting Australians and recognising the shallow jobs market. At the same time, we need to make sure we put in place the right incentives for Australians to re-engage with the workforce. (Time expired) The PRESIDENT: Senator Siewert, a supplementary question?