Biggest Age Pension rate rise for years, but is it sufficient?
The largest Age Pension rate rise in almost a decade takes effect from 20 March. This is what a selection of YourLifeChoices members had to say about the 'windfall'.
Tricia: Politicians keep giving themselves big rises. We paid taxes for years, now can't buy presents for my kids, my grandkids and great grandchildren… If you have bills, car, rent, clothes, medications, insurance, don't eat out, don't have any other money coming in. Try it.
Leslie: Only $20 a fortnight. WOW – that’ll go far. NOT.
James: Although the rise is welcomed, it still falls short of what we really need. Bread, milk, fruit and veg, petrol have all gone up $10 a week. May be able to get 2 loaves of bread. Don't even mention petrol and meat. Pensioners are sadly falling further down the hole. And if you live in government housing, they will take their little cut of the $20 to raise the rent.
John: Well what a farce that is. Everything around us has gone up more than 50% in 6 months and good old scomo gives us a lousy $20. How out of touch are these …
Chris: My health insurance has risen by $10 a fortnight. Fuel has risen 75%, food is already 20% higher, insurances on home/contents are increasing. I estimate the increase will leave pensioners way out of pocket – on average $50 to $80 a fortnight worse off. Meat is a luxury as sausages are now $16 a kilo, mince $14 a kilo, cauliflower are $8.90 each, fruit and vegetables double the price already, bread will increase … Health issues will increase also. Bulk billing is no longer $60 a visit – under half is covered by Medicare. The surgery used to be full of patients; pensioners are not going to the doctors and end up being taken to hospital as they are living week to week and cannot afford it .
Terry: The pension increase … astounds me. My grocery bill, for basic items this week, was $18.50 more than last week. So behind again. It's high time the government looked at current costs instead of last year's CPI. They reckon a 2.1% increase in CPI. Not sure how they came to this figure, most products increased by 10% plus. The Age Pension of $744.40 a week for a couple (new rate from next week) is just NOT sufficient to survive with everything going up mainly to fuel increases. And won't be long before we get a substantial increase in home insurance to cover the flood damage. What can we do to change the government's attitude towards Age pension payments?
What do you think older Australians can do to change the system? More meaningful rate rises are one thing, but are there other aspects of the Age Pension system that need an overhaul?
So may things have risen in price also my grocery bill had doubled this year, IMO they could make the pension $1000 P/FN at least.