Margaret May (McPherson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Ageing) Share this | Hansard source

One would have to wonder listening to the previous speaker if we actually are talking about the most vulnerable people in our communities—our senior Australians and our carers. And that is what we have been talking about this afternoon. I would ask the previous member: have you not been reading the press over the last four days? These are the people in Australia who have been threatened by your government. You are the ones who have gone out to the media talking about the bonus. You are the ones who are causing the anxiety and the stress for senior Australians. They are the ones feeling unsure of the future because you as a government will not commit to a bonus that they have received for the past four years, a bonus that has helped make their lives easier and given them a choice about what they do with that bonus. That bonus was paid because of our surplus. We gave back to the people who had given to us. You need to think about that too.

It is my belief that the Rudd government is dudding our carers and our pensioners. It is dudding them. This government is causing so much anxiety amongst our carers and amongst our aged. You will not commit to the bonus. All you will say is that they will not be worse off under a Rudd government under the budget to be brought down in May. But at no time today have we heard how they will not be worse off. You will not spell out and the Prime Minister will not spell out how those people are going to be paid. They do not want to be drip fed. Every caller to my office who has spoken about this wants a lump sum payment because it gives them choice about what they do with those extra dollars. It gives them choice about where those dollars are spent. There is a concern that, if it is paid as part of their age pension or as part of their carer payment, it can be taxed. Do we need to impose more taxes on older Australians or carers? Will you guarantee that it will not be taxed if it is paid as part of their age pension or their carer payment? I can tell you that people calling my office—the pension groups, the individuals—feel cheated. They feel let down by this government. They do not believe this government is listening because, if you had listened over the last few days, the Prime Minister would have come into this House today and told those Australians—those most vulnerable Australians—exactly what you are going to do in the budget. Instead, the anxiety and the worry are there, and they are going to be there for two months—two months of worrying about how this is going to be paid.

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