Media Release - Raise the Pension to Lower Financial Stress Felt by Older Australians

Frank Quinlan, Executive Director of Catholic Social Services Australia has called on the Government to increase the age pension to a substantially higher rate than the current 25 per cent of Male Total Average Weekly Earnings in order to alleviate the debilitating financial stress experienced by many older Australians.

Commenting as the Senate begins its hearing into the cost of living pressures on older Australians, Mr Quinlan said older Australians have a right to live fulfilling lives and to enjoy the fullest possible participation in the community, including the maintenance of family and social networks.

"This level of participation requires income above the need for food, shelter and the barest physical necessities. But over 12 per cent of people aged 55-64 and almost 10 per cent of people aged over 65 are living in poverty," Mr Quinlan said.

"Low income older Australians have little or no discretionary spending power and are increasingly vulnerable in the face of interest rate rises, petrol price hikes and the flow on effect from the drought.

"Governments have a responsibility to ensure all older Australians are accorded the respect which is due both to their fundamental human dignity and to their past and present contributions to society.

"It is essential that older Australians can access adequate and affordable social services, especially in the areas of health and aged care," Mr Quinlan said.

In its submission to the Senate Community Affairs Committee, Catholic Social Services Australia calls on the Federal Government to:

• Protect low income older Australians from associated increases in the price of energy, transport and other goods and services as a result of measures to address climate change and provide energy efficiency assistance programs to ensure low-income older people can participate, without undue disadvantage, in a more energy-efficient future.

• Ensure that all people on concession cards have a free basic course of dental care every two years. This initiative should be funded through the States and Territories on condition that they raise their own expenditure on oral health.

• Conduct further research to identify the special needs of grandparent families, especially Indigenous grandparent families, and provide appropriate government financial assistance.

• Remove the $450 monthly earnings threshold for Superannuation Guarantee contributions

• Examine the equity and fairness of tax concessions applied to superannuation.

• Consider how the superannuation system could be changed to remove the existing systemic bias against people who have worked for low wages or spent extended periods of their working-age lives out of the paid workforce, unemployed or under-employed.

• Increase the pension to a substantially higher rate than the current 25 per cent of Male Total Average Weekly Earnings.

A copy of the Submission is available at: www.catholicsocialservices.org.au

23 August 2007

CONTACT: Judith Tokley 02 6285 1366 / 0408 824 306