Philip S.
I do have the answers.
Stop giving welfare as 'money' obtained from other workers.
Give welfare in the form of a job instead, helping the government do things to save money.
Double dole for full time work.
Create a culture of employment within the ranks of the unemployed, to stop the slide into welfare dependency, whilst keeping the country productive.

This will fix indigenous problems, economic problems, people throwing their lives away problems... and will end up saving far more than it costs.
It's really bloody simple actually.

We have the problems we do becase leaders are incompetent and can't find solutions to simple problems, plus the country is too damn corrupt, problems become corporate industries and the money thrown at these problems become part of the self serving framework that corporations and organisations rely on..

another problem largely created by socialist destruction of familes.

I agree with PhilipS: a bunch of ratbags and posers the lot of them. There are homeless people in need of help, but they aren't among this lot of scum. The fire brigade should be brought in to hose them out.

I would be very surprised indeed, if most of these people camping in Martin Place are homeless? More especially this seventy year old, NZ interloper, with his twenty years old 'expectant' girlfriend, and his eleven children? God we've become so damn weak, it makes me feel so ashamed, when we should be doing a lot more for the genuine homeless not these pretenders, many of whom deserve to be arrested, fined, and made to seek work otherwise totally remove ALL their benefits.

Newstart allowance per fortnight:
single, no children $535.60 = $267.80 pw = $38.25 pd.
single, aged 60 or over, after 9 continuous months on payment $579.30 = 289.65 pw = $41.37 pd.

Now, rent a house at the cheap price of $120 pw. That leaves you $147.40 pw = $21.05 pd or $169.65 pw = 24.23 pd. But out of that you'll need to set aside some money to pay the electricity and gas bill. I live on my own, economist and pay about $4.50 pd electricity. So, let's allow $3 pd for that; the daily amount now available for all other expenses is $17.05 or $21.23. (By the way, is the house furnished, or do you need to buy some stuff? And you'll definitely need to buy household basics regularly: toilet paper, detergent etc.)

So here's you choice. Live on the street and have $38-41 pd for food and other expenses - and you can get charity food hand-outs and pick up a bit extra from begging, or take the cheap rent and have just $17-21 pd left over (and you've got to do the washing up, clean the house etc.) On the streets, you also have company of others in the same boat, have the entertainment of the passing throng, street buskers; in the rental you're alone, unless you go out (and spend money on public transport etc.)

It looks like homelessness may be a rational economic decision when you're on the dole.

Has anyone posting here ever tried living on those amounts, with no financial backing (savings) or assets (a house, car)? That is, walk out of your current house, with just a bag of clothes and a toothbrush, and actually tried living on $38/41 per day? Or even in you current house, live on less than $20 pd for all other expenses above $3 pd for electricity? Will you be able to afford a mobile phone od computer to follow OLO?

Armchair Critic: "Give welfare in the form of a job instead, helping the government do things to save money. Double dole for full time work. Create a culture of employment within the ranks of the unemployed, to stop the slide into welfare dependency, whilst keeping the country productive."

This is a nice idea. It has been tried, and in general it doesn't work. The problems are:
1. Some people are physically or mentally incapable of working, through no fault of their own, but don't qualify for the disability pension which is way better than newstart: $808.30 pf.
2. 'Helping the government do things to save money' - exactly what sort of things? Lots of past programs were clearly trivial make-work, dreamt up for the program, leading to cynicism and lack of commitment by participants. If the work was actually necessary and productive, there are two issues - why isn't private enterprise doing this, and why aren't the participants being paid proper wages, not just the dole (or even double)?

There was a work-for-dole tree-planting program in my area some years ago. The participants, locals, were sceptical about the location and plant selection, and they were right; there was no long-term maintenance and all the trees died. People want to feel that they are doing something useful, that they can point to proudly in the future, 'I helped with that', not to feel from the start that it's all just a waste of time.