Sunbelt welfare: geographic patterns of dependency on additional family payments in Brisbane and the South-East Queensland region

Despite record population growth and in-migration in recent years to the 'sun belt' metropolis of Brisbane and the South-East Queensland region, the economy of the area is dominated by consumerism and lacks wealth-producing functions. There is a relatively high level of dependency on Additional Family Payments (AFP) provided by the Commonwealth. These benefits are a function not only of number of children but also of family income. This analysis reveals that within this rapidly growing region there exist dramatic variations in the spatial distribution and concentration of benefits recipients, with pockets of very high dependency. Copyright. Monash University and the author/s