Alternative spending options for JobKeeper surplus

2 Jun 2020

Q. On which of the following would you prefer the Government use the $60B it has previously allocated to the JobKeeper program?

		Federal Voting Intention
	Total		Labor	Coalition	Greens	TOTAL: Other
Extend financial schemes supporting those affected by the Covid-19 pandemic (JobSeeker increases, JobKeeper and free early learning childcare) beyond their current end dates	35%		40%	28%	48%	29%
Broaden JobKeeper scheme to include universities, migrant workers and employees of companies owned by foreign governments	20%		23%	15%	25%	24%
Put money towards reducing national debt accumulate during the Covid-19 pandemic	45%		37%	57%	27%	47%
Base (n)	1,059		299	413	95	136

A third of people would prefer the JobKeeper budget to be spent on extending the scheme beyond its current end date, with a further 20% preferring the scheme to be broadened to include more workers. 45% want the money to be put towards reducing the national debt.
Younger people (aged 18-34) are more likely to want the money extending (42%) or broadening the scheme (29%) compared to those over 55 (25% and 16%).
Over half of Coalition voters (57%) and retired people (58%) prefer using the money to reduce National debt, rather than providing more support for those who have lost work due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

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