opinions on $5000 baby bonus?

Question

when i had my daughter they had just brought in the $3000 bonus i was happy because i got her things so much better than what we planned we could afford, but then i noticed as i looked around that everyone was pregnant! i know alot of woman did the same as me and bought every thing for the baby but i dont understand why woman are pushing around old mouldy prams when they are getting $3000-$4000-$5000 it just surprises me how many people started getting pregnant but are obviously not spending the money on the baby.Iknow that alot of woman had baby's because the baby bonus ment they could afford the time off work....im not refering to those ladies.

Answer 1

Unfortunately a lot of women use the money on the pokies or on themselves instead of on their babies. My children are 17 and 8 so I did not get any baby bonus when they were born. I think there should be a way so that the money can only be used on baby items as it was meant to be.

Answer 2

Trust me, when you're pregnant, it heightens your sensitivity to the whole issue and it DOES look like everyone seems to be pregnant. Before you have kids and it isn't an issue, you don't notice. It's like if you decide to buy a certain make or model of car, you suddenly start seeing them everywhere.

As far as spending the baby bonus goes, there are plenty of families who need to use this money for general iving expenses immediately after a baby is born, rather than fancy new prams or whatever. If mum normally works and she has to be at home, this money is replacing her income to buy food, pay the bills, put petrol in the car etc. Or maybe it has been used to replace savings that were depleted because of medical bills accumulated throught the pregnancy.

Pushing around a "mouldy old pram" may suit some people. Maybe it is their third or fourth child and the pram is still going strong, so why buy a new one? Why not put that money aside for something more useful?

Because someone appears not to have spent every last cent of the baby bonus meeting the most attractive and fanciest needs of the baby that has just been born does not automatically mean that it has been squandered. The money is meant for the family as a whole.

Answer 3

This question refers to the Australian Government giving new mums a 'baby bonus'. Originally $3000 AUD it has gone up each year and is now currently $5000 per child. The idea is to try and get more women in this country to have childen.

You have a good point. There is plenty of evidence to show a proportionate rise in the sales of hi end electrical good (esp large flat screen TV's) as the baby bonus was released. Some people have even done reseach into this, although it can be hard to prove statisitcally.

Simply, not all mums are as good as you seem to be and spend the money on other things that may not be baby related.

Some of them are great mums but may have invested the money for their child's future rather than spend it now. This can be a good strategy if you keep adding to the initial investment.

Some of them whack it up their arm in less than a month.

Some people are just terrible with money. They mean well, but some people you could give $10 million dollars and they would still blow it all on rubbish given enough time.

Some people would think spending a lot of money on brand new baby items which quickly become unusable as the child grows is a waste of money so they have spent or invested the money in other (not so public ways) to help their child.

Just my thoughts....

Answer 4

As the money is government funded (from tax payers) the money is meant to be spent on the child and any medical costs incurred, the first of these little vote gainers was the $600 payout to all parents (regardless of weather they had or had not paid taxes) introduced when the feds changed the income support tax bracket, when a survey was performed in my region it was found that the pokies, pubs and women's clothing stores, electrical goods (game boys, PS, x box's & ipods) were the biggest profit making areas at this particular time this repeated itself the following year.
Many mums/dad's are doing the right thing with this money but there are unfortunately many that are using the money for their own purposes even the drug dealers do well around here at that time.
My $600 went towards my daughters uni course.
The next vote gainer was the above mentioned baby bonus as the government felt that Australian women needed a financial incentive to have children as our population growth has reached zero (their words not mine) we women were instructed to have one for mum, one for dad and one for the country I believe were the words used by Mr Howards buddy when introducing this.
It is a good idea, but will and has been misused.
I need to add that from what I have been told that the money is not paid in a lump sum, it is meant to be split 50/50 and can only be received upon receipt of proof of babies innoculation against child hood dieseases.

Answer 5

I think the baby bonus is a good thing in all. It does offset the fact that Australia is so backwards in having no paid maternity leave and child care costs are astronomical!

Perhaps the government could have looked at these problems instead of a bandaid fix of a once off payment.

Especially since you don't need a IQ test to have a baby so plenty of teens and idiots are cashing in, to the possible detriment of their children.

That being said, the $4000 is going to come in handy to allow me to have more time off and give out child a good start in life. If you are sensible then the bonus can come in handy, I don't think paying for an expensive stroller or Boori cot is most important though.

Note to government, fix the other issues and then do away with the bonus, we won't need it then. (my 2 cents worth).

Answer 6

firstly the baby bonus is not $5000 it is $4000.As of July 2008 it increases to $5000.
it is not split 50/50 it is given in the whole amount unless as of the 1st Jan if you are17 and under it is given in 13 equal instalments.
i agree with some of your arguments as a mum of 2 and working part time i used mine to have 2 months of work and pay my obstetrician $2100.
so not much was left to buy new things.
i am pregnant with third baby (all planned)and certainly appreciate the baby bonus but my husband and i never thought to have more children because of a one off payment of $4000,you find most adults who have children in loving relationships are more mature than those kids having babies for a one off paycheck.

Answer 7

Too many toddlers are producing toddlers just to get the infant bonus, which they proceed to spend on Plasma TVs and different non necessary luxuries. This creates an underclass who will ultimately finally end up on the dole with the main harmless and susceptible, the toddlers, getting deprived of their birthright, a brilliant gamble to alter into 'somebody' in this worldwide. of path, for which you incredibly choose an training and proper nurturing of abilities. If the government is heavily interested in increasing the inhabitants of taxpayers instead of dropouts, they might desire to provide the infant bonus interior the style of a have faith for the infant that is utilized for academic expenditures. the different reward would desire to be interior the style of loose centers for the infant alongside with scientific care and childcare. confusing-working taxpayers' shouldn't would desire to pay for individuals's plasma TVs and medicines it fairly is what looks happening now.

Answer 8

just because you get money for having a baby does not mean that you have to buy top of the line stuff that parade you child around in. maybe they put the money in to a savings fund for the child. maybe they paid off hospital debts from when the baby was born. who knows? bottom line is it's none of your business what they do with their own money.