Scott Ryan (Victoria, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Prime Minister, Senator Evans. Will the minister confirm that the government’s one-off payment to single pensioners of $1,400 to tide them over for the next nine months is equivalent to a pension increase of roughly $38 a week? And will the minister guarantee that pensioners will receive at least this much on an ongoing basis from the government from the next budget?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the senator for his question. He has, I think, correctly identified that this announcement today will provide significant financial assistance to pensioners in providing $1,400 to pensioners in a one-off lump sum payment. That does reflect a significant weekly average over the nine months, if you average out the payment, in the order of $35. I think he quoted $38. I have not worked it out exactly—that is not the basis of the payment—but it is of that order. We have also provided $2,100 as a payment to couples.

The reason we have done that is to reflect the fact that a number of authorities and Mr Harmer have indicated to us that it was the single pensioners who were most in need. What we have done in this measure is strike the rate at 66 per cent of the couple rate. So there is relativity there. Those payments, as I have indicated, will be paid on 8 December 2008. We will be seeking to bring legislation through the parliament to implement these measures and I hope to have the support of the parliament and the Senate in doing that.

We do, though, say again that this is about a down payment on what is required in the longer term, and what is required in the longer term is fundamental reform of the pension system. We have accepted that pensioners have been doing it tough—that is the reason we made it a priority in the May budget to provide assistance to pensioners. We made a substantial down payment in that budget for those on pensions and on disability and carer allowances. In addition to that, today we have made a further significant investment in supporting those people.

What we know is that the current system is not serving them well. We have initiated, as part of the broader tax reform review, a review by Dr Harmer, the head of the Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, to look at what we could do in terms of long-term structural reform. We accept that the current system is not working properly, not delivering for those on pensions in the way it should and not guaranteeing security in their income, so we have said it needs fundamental reform. We have been arguing this for months now, and we have put in place the measures that will allow us to fundamentally reform the system.

On two occasions now, in the May budget and in today’s package, we have responded to the needs of pensioners and those on disability and carer allowances by investing in increased payments to them. That will provide enormous assistance to them during this financial year. But we have been making it crystal clear for months that we intend to structurally reform the pension payment system and that we want to do that in a considered way and a way that produces a good public policy outcome. That process is in train. When it is completed, it will feed into the preparation for the 2009-10 budget, and that decision will be announced by government when taken.

So, in answer to the senator’s question, the perspective of the government on this is that we are serious about long-term reform. We have now made a second down payment on assisting those living on the pension and other benefits, but the fundamental reform process continues, and long-term reform will be achieved. (Time expired)

Scott Ryan (Victoria, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I have a supplementary question. Minister, how did the government arrive at the lump sum figure that is roughly equivalent to $38 a week? Having finally copied our plan for a minimum $30 increase in the pension rate, will the minister now apologise to the pensioners of Australia for denying them this necessary increase until today?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The senator’s question does him no credit. What the government has done is respond to the serious financial crisis which this country is facing, and what we have done now on two occasions is provide extra support for pensioners. I remind the Senate that, in 11½ years, the previous government did nothing to fundamentally improve the lot of pensioners and those on other payments. What we are delivering for pensioners today is what we think serves the national interest. But we are not only delivering for pensioners and those on disability and carer allowances; we are also delivering for Australian families and those seeking to buy their first home. This is a fundamental package that seeks to position Australia to withstand the global financial crisis and to leave us best placed to continue economic growth.