Page 907 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 20 March 2019
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has people on the highest levels of income in the country, on the highest levels of education and with a high standard of living, that does not mean that we should accept that it is just how it is. It does not mean that we should not strive for better. I was a bit shocked that Ms Le Couteur said that the attitude of people towards older people is that that is just the way it is and there is not much, she thinks, that we can do to encourage a change in that attitude. That is not something that I accept, and it is something that we will continue to work to improve. Just because we might be doing better at something than another state does not mean we should not keep striving to continually improve our standard of living here in the ACT.
At 6.30 pm, in accordance with standing order 34, the debate was interrupted. The motion for the adjournment of the Assembly having been put and negatived, the debate was resumed.
MS LAWDER: As a nation and as a territory, we put a lot of effort into trying to eliminate age discrimination at all levels. It is something we should continue to strive for, not just take as “That’s the way it is, that’s how it is, and we have to let it go.” Some of the point of my motion today was this: in the mid-term review of the Labor-Greens agreement there appeared to be nothing relating to older people, nothing relating to older Canberrans. To me, this epitomised this government’s view of older people: that there has been nothing important enough in the past two years to be an achievement for older Canberrans. There was nothing in that review.
I will reiterate my point that the age-friendly suburbs program is for everyone. It is basic municipal services dressed up as trying to be something for older Canberrans. It is absolutely important that we maintain this municipal infrastructure—I am not trying to argue against it—but do not use it as a key thing that you are doing to help older Canberrans. It is for all Canberrans. It is why we pay our rates, our ever-increasing rates that are increasingly difficult for older Canberrans to keep up with.
It is great that we have a vision for our city and we are looking to continue the development of the age-friendly city plan. But what really matters, especially for older Canberrans, is making it happen. To put not too fine a point on it, some of them might not have that much longer left to see it come to fruition. A vision of something 20, 30 or 55 years in the future is not what they are looking for as they struggle to get to their local shops.
I will give the example of someone who lives not far from me. I will call him Laurie, partly because that is what his name actually is. Laurie said he was most upset to learn that he would now have to catch two buses to get to his shopping centre since losing his licence due to ill health. Laurie does not care about a vision for the future; Laurie cares about getting to his local shops tomorrow and the next day and next week. It is ironic that the reason Laurie lost his licence due to ill health was his failing vision.
We must have respect for our older Canberrans, and respect for each other in this place as well. Some of the comments that we have heard do not really appear to demonstrate respect for each other.
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