Dennis Jensen (Tangney, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to take this opportunity to convey the disgust older Australians, in my electorate and indeed Australia, feel over their treatment by the Rudd government. They feel neglected, particularly given that the federal government demonstrated absolute contempt today for those who have built the great society and country we call home. They feel exploited, especially by the underhand manner in which the government slipped in punitive clauses which will cut out their benefits from next year. They are furious, and they have every right to be. They have been let down by a government that promised the world and so far has delivered nothing.

The Rudd government promised to bring down the price of groceries. The Rudd government promised to bring down the price of petrol. The Rudd government promised to bring down the cost of living, and I ask you: what have they done? They have done nothing. All they have done is watch—watch the cost of living get worse and worse. Of course, they now continually blame the global economy for their failures. They should not have made those wild, pre-election promises to the Australian people if they could not deliver—and deliver they most certainly have not. They knew they could not. The public was duped by a smooth spin master and now we all bear the consequences of an inadequate, insensitive government full of talk, talk, talk and no action.

To top it all off, the Rudd government, by rejecting the coalition’s proposal for an immediate $30-a-week increase to the single age pension, has flatly refused to act on the difficulties that Australian pensioners are experiencing. This $30 a week would greatly assist in dealing with the skyrocketing prices we have seen since this government took office. This $30 a week would be a godsend for hundreds of thousands of Australians who, we know, are not coping; who, we know, are suffering; and who, we know, cannot wait any longer for relief.

The Prime Minister and six of his senior ministers have admitted that they could not survive on the current pension allowance, yet they arrogantly and ruthlessly will not act now to help. That is right: Mr Rudd wants to wait until next February. That is six months away—six months of hardship for our pensioners for yet another one of his committees to finish yet another review. I would also like to point out that Mr Rudd had already seen an 83-page report on the plight of pensioners, by Dr Jeff Harmer. On viewing the report, what did he do? Yes, you guessed it: he called for another review into the review he already has in his hands. Unbelievable and inexcusable! He cannot show leadership on important issues without review after review and committee after committee before he can make up his mind. Let me also ask: will the never-ending review into pensioner entitlements actually change anything? We have to wait six months at least to find out if the findings are adequate and a positive way forward. Maybe he will be setting up ‘pensioner watch’!

Question time today was a lively and very frustrating debate for me, my colleagues and, in particular, our senior Australians. The Prime Minister continually—time after time after time—refused to answer questions on why he would not act now and endorse the $30 increase. He is letting this country down with his spin, his rhetoric and, most importantly, his blatant disregard for the Australian public and, in particular, our senior Australians. In fact, today Mr Rudd and Mr Swan had the gall to say that the opposition’s proposal of a $30 increase was nothing but a political stunt. A political stunt? How dare he call a necessary solution to a dire situation a political stunt? That is pretty rough coming from the masters of political stunts.

In June I wrote to seniors in Tangney, my electorate, to inform them of the latest cut to their benefits, an item hidden in the Rudd government’s first federal budget and planned to come into force at the beginning of the next financial year.

Ms Anna Burke (Chisholm, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member will refer to the Prime Minister and the Treasurer by their correct titles, please.

Dennis Jensen (Tangney, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Seniors across Tangney were outraged to discover details of a Rudd government plan to strip—

Ms Anna Burke (Chisholm, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have asked you to use the appropriate titles, please.

Dennis Jensen (Tangney, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Deputy Speaker, isn’t it the Rudd government? I am not referring to him; I am referring to the Rudd government. The government plan is to strip them of many hard-earned benefits, including access to the critical Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. The change, which was included in the recent federal budget and is intended to come into effect on 1 July next year, slashes the number of self-funded retirees who are entitled to a Commonwealth seniors health card. Eroding the entitlements at this stage in their life is simply despicable and causes undue worry and stress. At present seniors are entitled to the concessions, provided that their annual income does not exceed $50,000 for a single or $80,000 for a couple, with payments drawn from superannuation excluded from the assessment. However, from 1 July next year, superannuation will be included in the assessment, meaning that many self-funded retirees will exceed income caps. I have had many visits from self-funded retirees who are very worried, scared and distressed that they will not be able to afford their medicines or cope financially with buying them if they lose their Commonwealth healthcare card.

In the mail-out to seniors, I also enclosed a postcard for recipients to sign and return to my office to express their disapproval of the government’s handling of seniors’ affairs, and the response was overwhelming. More than 3,000 cards were returned in just days, and the phones in my office did not seem to stop ringing for over a week. These 3,000 cards were returned by seniors who are angry and frustrated with the Rudd government’s neglect of pensioners and the Prime Minister’s false promises, and this bundle of cards contains the cards from those who agreed with the Prime Minister’s stance. There is somewhat of a difference, don’t you think? In fact it is a huge difference, clearly demonstrating to the Prime Minister that our seniors are not happy with him and not happy that they are being treated as second-class citizens—which they most definitely are not. Let us hope he gets the message loud and clear and rethinks the pig-headed refusal to act now.

As well as the postcards, many seniors—both pensioners and self-funded retirees—returned lengthy letters expressing their concerns and outlining their individual plights. I was shocked and deeply moved at what was going on in our senior community. To be honest, I had no idea of the extent of the hardships that are occurring now and the further hardships to be experienced after next year’s budget. I felt the need to act promptly, to do something to allay people’s fears, to explain what is happening and to give advice as to what services are available to both pensioners and self-funded retirees. I decided to hold a public forum two weeks later and, again, I was stunned by the feedback. The capacity of our venue was less than 200, and we were fully booked days ahead of the event. Even so, on 24 July, more than 200 people packed into Riverton-Rossmoyne Bowling Club to vent their frustration and get answers to their questions, particularly about the plans which could see them stripped of their federal concessions.

In conclusion, we have the financial plight of our pensioners and we have the absolute contempt with which the government is treating self-funded retirees. If this is the way the government treats such a deserving part of the population, what hope is there for the rest of us? I will be assuring the seniors of Tangney that their voices will be heard not only now but well into the future in Canberra. I will maintain the rage—I think we have heard that expression before—and I will continue to fight for a better, fairer, more realistic outcome for our senior Australians.