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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2004 Week 05 Hansard (Friday, 14 May 2004) . . Page.. 1998 ..

has managed to fund a raft of vague programs, such as $335,000 allocated in 2004-05 by the Chief Minister’s Department for an ethereal initiative entitled simply “Ageing”. This is supposed to provide funding to, in the government’s own words, “promote positive ageing”. As I will demonstrate, there is not much in this year’s budget for our ageing population to be positive about. One of the groups that have again missed out, predictably under Labor and the Treasurer, are the low income self-funded retirees. There is nothing in this budget for them.

Mr Quinlan: The low income people are okay; it is the wealthy ones who are missing out!

MR CORNWELL: I know the Treasurer will argue that government wishes to direct its funding “to those most in need”—the famous quote—but the low income self-funded retirees are certainly in as much need of financial assistance as are their pensioner counterparts. The government has seen fit to fund additional concessions for gas and electricity—

Mr Quinlan: I give you the hand-wringing prize for the Assembly—our resident hand-wringer!

MR CORNWELL:—in addition to the other widespread concessions afforded to pensioners to those whom it deems to be in need. Order please!

MR SPEAKER: Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker—and about time too.

MR CORNWELL: Thank you, Mr Speaker. We have seen no commitment by the government—

Mrs Burke: They are getting away with it scot-free over there.

MR CORNWELL: Will you shut up? We have seen no commitment by the government to also extend those same concessions to low income self-funded retirees. It is interesting that even the new increase in gas and electricity concessions which is being offered to eligible households in 2004-05 will amount to a measly $23.15 a year. That is the equivalent of 44c a week—less than the cost of a postage stamp. It is an insult, and hardly a commitment for a Labor government to assist those most in need pensioners, or anyone else. Not only do low income self-funded retirees miss out on increased electricity and gas concessions, they are not offered the increased $305 per annum rebate cap on rates afforded to pensioners, veterans and gold card holders.

Let us look further at the aged-care sector. There is funding of $341,000 over four years for the continuation of a residential aged-care liaison nurse, after a previous successful pilot program. This funding is supposed to ensure the timely placement of aged-care patients from ACT public hospitals and the community into residential aged-care, a valuable initiative at first glance. However, the fundamental flaw in this initiative is that there is almost nowhere for this liaison officer to place aged-care patients. Where are they going to be placed? The ACT government has only recently admitted there are nearly 500 people waiting for high-level aged-care beds in the territory, and goodness knows how many hundreds more are waiting for low-care beds.

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