What Bob Hawke Did in the 1990s to Reduce Child Poverty

By Phoebe Lovett, Child Participation Specialist – Valuing Children Initiative

During the early 1990s, Prime Minister Bob Hawke implemented several major policy reforms aimed at alleviating child poverty in Australia. Although his famous 1987 promise— “by 1990, no Australian child will be living in poverty”—was not fully realised, significant progress was made, child poverty was reduced by 30% (ACOSS, 2017).

1. Family Payments Benchmarked to Living Standards

The Hawke Government committed to ensuring family payments kept pace with living standards by linking them indirectly to average weekly earnings through the pension rate benchmarks (ACOSS, 2019; PM&C, 1989). By 1990, payments for each child were set at:

• 15% of the married pension rate for children under 13 (PM&C, 1989),

• 20% for children aged 13 15 (PM&C, 1989).

These payments were indexed to inflation, helping maintain their real value over time and ensuring that low-income families were shielded from inflation and did not fall further behind as living costs rose (PM&C, 1989). This adjustment was key to improving the adequacy and sustainability of support for children in poor households.

2. Family Allowance Supplement (FAS)

Introduced in 1987 but continuing into the early 1990s, the Family Allowance Supplement (FAS) provided targeted, means-tested support to low- and middle-income families, targeted at both those in and out of employment and particularly those transitioning from welfare to work (PM&C, 1989; Pietropiccolo, 2019). The FAS:

• It aimed to smooth income levels and reduce high effective marginal tax rates, helping parents keep more of their income as they transitioned into work and take up work without being penalised by loss of benefits (Cass, 1988).

• FAS was a key policy in operationalising Hawke’s anti-child poverty commitment and later evolved into the Family Tax Benefit System.

3. Expansion of Commonwealth Rent Assistance (CRA)

In the early 1990s, the Hawke Government expanded the Commonwealth Rent Assistance program to improve housing affordability for low-income families in the private rental market (ABS, 1997). Previously limited in scope, CRA was:

• Made more accessible to a broader group of welfare recipients.

• Reduced housing stress, which is a key driver of child poverty

CRA became an essential tool in preventing deeper poverty among families without access to public housing (AIHW, 2019).

4. Introduction of the Child Support Scheme

A major reform introduced by the Hawke Government was the Child Support Scheme, legislated in 1988 and fully implemented by 1989. This replaced an ineffective court-based system with a centralized administrative one that:

• Ensured non-custodial parents contributed financially to their children’s upbringing.

• Made child support enforcement more consistent and reliable (DSS, 2025).

This reform directly benefited single-parent families, who were particularly vulnerable to poverty due to irregular or absent financial support. The introduction of the child support scheme lifted approximately 60,000 children out of poverty 1997-98 (Parliament of Australia, 2004, para.10.95).

References

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), 1997. Commonwealth Rent Assistance. Australian Social Trends, 1997. Canberra: ABS. Available at: https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs%40.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/AB57666E9B005883CA2570EC001B2A09 [Accessed 27 August 2025].

AIHW (2019) Housing assistance in Australia 2019. Available at: https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/housing-assistance/housing-assistance-in-australia-2019

Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS), 2017. A future for all children: Addressing child poverty in Australia. ACOSS Briefing, October 2017 [pdf]. Available at: https://www.acoss.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/ACOSS-Child-Poverty-Briefing_13-Oct-17.pdf [Accessed 27 August 2025].

Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS), 2019. ACOSS tribute to Bob Hawke. [online] 17 May. Australian Council of Social Service. Available at: https://www.acoss.org.au/media_release/acoss-tribute-to-bob-hawke/ [Accessed 27 August 2025].

Cass, B. (1988) Income support for families with children. DSS Policy Discussion Paper No. 11.

Department of Social Services, 2024. Reviewing the Child Support Scheme. [online] Department of Social Services. Available at: https://www.dss.gov.au/child-support/reviewing-child-support-scheme [Accessed 27 August 2025].

Hawke, R.J.L. (1987) ALP Policy Speech, National Press Club, 23 June 1987. https://australianpolitics.com/1987/06/23/bob-hawke-alp-policy-speech.html

Parliament of Australia, Senate Community Affairs References Committee, 2004. Children in Poverty, in Poverty in Australia, Chapter 10 (Women and sole parents), para. 10.95. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia. Available at: https://www.aph.gov.au/parliamentary_business/committees/senate/community_affairs/completed_inquiries/2002‑04/poverty/report/c10 [Accessed 27 August 2025].

Pietropiccolo, A., 2019. A Childhood Without Poverty? Presentation delivered at the FRSA National Conference, 19–22 November 2019, Crowne Plaza Hunter Valley [pdf] (Adj. Prof. Tony Pietropiccolo AM). Available at: https://wacoss.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/A-Childhood-Without-Poverty-Adj.-Prof.-Tony‑Pietropiccolo.pdf [Accessed 27 August 2025].

Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C), 1989. Transcript 7310 – Launch of the Family Support Package, 29 August 1989. Canberra: Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet. [online] Available at: https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-7310 [Accessed 27 August 2025].