Cost of living to rise amid fuel price hike

For hundreds, if not thousands, in the Ballarat community, the compounded financial hardship is anticipated to translate into consecutive days without food and medication, as well as missed medical appointments.

"I don't even know how to help my people anymore; it's more than just desperate - it's like some of us are living in a third world country," said Tina Hardy, who runs self-funded food relief charity Food with Thought for the elderly.

"I live in Ballarat, and I'm finding [that] I now can't feed people who have lived here their whole life - who are in their 70s and 80s - because, for all of us, rent is going up, food is going up, utilities are going up and fuel is so high."

The national average price of unleaded petrol rose by 3.3 cents to a record 183.9 cents per litre last week, with many Ballarat service stations exceeding that amount, nudging $2 per litre.

And amid the fallout of the Russia-Ukraine war, the price of unleaded petrol is widely expected to climb higher still, to around $2.50 per litre.

Ms Hardy, whose charity services over 100 regular clients from Ballarat and surrounding townships - including Maryborough, Avoca, Clunes and Ballan - said the record cost of commuting had foreclosed the ability of many to pick up their meals, forcing her to deliver to some clients.

"Most of my clients haven't got the money for fuel to pick up meals from me, so I've tried to deliver as much as I can," she said, adding that she was fortunate to receive a $50 fuel voucher from CatholicCare to that end.

"These are people who can't afford six dollars for their medication a week or Meals on Wheels.

"But I've also got out-of-towners who I personally - physically and financially - can't reach. I'm on a pension myself and it's just impossible."

Kim Boyd, community development manager at Anglicare Ballarat, said the unfolding cost of living crisis within the community would confront many already vulnerable people with unpalatable choices.

MORE ON THIS

"For some, it's going to mean a choice between going to the supermarket to buy food or taking the children to school or missing appointments - like doctor appointments - because they can't afford petrol," Ms Boyd said.

"Even now, we're already seeing more people presenting [for emergency food relief] than we were this time last year, and that's without seeing the full impact of higher petrol prices yet."

Salvation Army Ballarat team leader John Clonan said he expected the record fuel prices would also cascade into pain at the supermarket counter, with transport costs predicted to push up the price of essential food items, including vegetables and milk.

"That general flow-on effect is likely to happen," Mr Clonan said. "People's budgets will certainly be stretched."

"It ain't rocket science that with interest rates likely to rise and higher cost of living that people's ability to make ends meet will diminish - it's a vicious cycle."

But Mr Clonan said the wave of poverty, isolation and distress besetting much of the community was not, contrary to popular opinion, inevitable, and that immediate government intervention would preclude tragic outcomes for many.

"As we have always said, Jobseeker payments need to increase substantially to enable people to move out of poverty," he said, adding that he, too, had noticed a rise in the number of people seeking emergency relief.

"The $50 a fortnight increase [to Jobseeker] this time last year nowhere near met the mark - people are still living well below the poverty line.

"Those on Jobseeker are up there amongst our highest in terms of presenting for [emergency] assistance."

It's a view backed by a recently released joint report by the Australian Council of Social Service and UNSW, which found the temporary increase to welfare payments in 2020 had the effect of halving poverty in Australia.

The report also found the federal government's reversal of income support measures the following year returned many people, plus more, to abject poverty.

"The COVID-19 pandemic taught us that poverty and inequality are not an inevitable state of being," said Cassandra Goldie, chief executive of ACOSS.

"[Poverty and inequality] grow because government policies allow them to, and in many cases, directly increase them.

"We need candidates, in the lead up to this federal election, to commit to lifting the rate of Jobseeker, so that people have the confidence of knowing they can cover the basics."

If you are seeing this message you are a loyal digital subscriber to The Courier, as we made this story available only to subscribers. Thank you very much for your support and allowing us to continue telling Ballarat's story. We appreciate your support of journalism in our great city.