Page 5597 - Week 13 - Wednesday, 17 November 2010
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
motion and I would like to make a few observations. We will be supporting the motion.
The contribution that older Canberrans make to our city and our community is significant. Many in the community have older relatives who provide assistance in a number of areas, particularly looking after children, for example. It is often older Canberrans who are the volunteers that are so important to some of our community organisations. In fact, I am sure, and we know, that without the support of older Canberrans our community would not function anywhere near as well as it does now.
While we laud the efforts of these people and the contribution they make to our community, many are continuing to struggle to make ends meet, despite the recent increases in the age pension. In fact, today’s earlier motion in relation to the cost of living is particularly pertinent to older members of our community.
Earlier today we saw the Labor Party and Greens voting against recognising these cost of living pressures on Canberrans as a whole. There is no doubt that the increases we highlighted—a 100 per cent increase in water, a 70 per cent increase in electricity and a 75 per cent increase in rates—have a real and serious impact on older Canberrans, amongst others.
The government suggested that in fact they had little or no role to play in many of these cost pressures. I think that, in considering these cost of living issues, we should always have in mind vulnerable Canberrans. There is no doubt that whilst not all older Canberrans are vulnerable, many find themselves in financial difficulties and many need additional support.
I think it is worth touching on a number of the particular concerns for our seniors. One of the important things about this motion is that we will actually be able to hear directly from seniors in terms of some of the things that we as an Assembly could be doing better, and particularly that the government could be doing better, to serve the needs of our older Canberrans.
Health is a particularly important issue facing older Canberrans. The Council on the Ageing published a survey of 700 older Canberrans just prior to the last election. In the survey, it was revealed that about 100 had ceased their private health insurance and about half of those who did not have health insurance had previously had coverage in a fund but had to cease their membership because of rising living costs. A third of respondents said they were buying less food, buying cheaper food or changing their diets. Over 300 have reduced their use of heating, including by going to bed early to limit their electricity bills. This is, of course, before the introduction of many of the measures which will further push up electricity prices for all Canberrans.
Currently, the health system is struggling to cope. Older Canberrans have difficulty accessing our emergency departments. Older persons in Canberra experience a worse rate of access block than average, and this is getting worse. The health department’s annual report states that the consequence of longer waiting times for older persons is a higher rate of complications; therefore access block in this area is of concern. The Health annual report further reveals that the older persons in-patient mental health
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video