Australia's border protection policy and homelessness

Many Australians cannot imaging living without a Centrelink payment. They know first hand the difficulties of accessing stable housing while living below the poverty line. Asylum seekers access a payments that are 89% of the Centrelink New Start payment - a payment widely acknowledged as being one of the most restrictive in Australia. At the margins of society, and often without adequate English language skills, they have already lost their homeland and are often separated from families. Their need for stable housing is significant as their residential address needs to be reported regularly to immigration authorities.