Australian Catholic bishops say poverty in Australia has reached crisis point and the Federal Government needs to take emergency measures.

The bishops have released their social justice statement for 2008.The Australian Catholic Social Justice Council says despite the country's wealth, 20 per cent are living below the poverty line.

Those struggling the most are the Indigenous, sole parents, asylum seekers and the homeless. Council chairman Bishop Christopher Saunders says the Federal Government needs to act."There is an emergency relief needed in our society for that 20 per cent," he said.

The director of the Social Justice Project at the University of New South Wales, Professor Julian Disney, says the Government should see alleviating poverty as good economics."It's also in the interest of long-term, sustainable economic development," he said. The statement says Australia has one of the greatest income gaps between the rich and poor among the developed nations.