Saving and the aging population

Labor has claimed that the Howard Government already has legislation on the backburner to cut pensions through harsh means testing arrangements that will impact on pensioners who give family financial assistance, and those who receive compensation payments for pain and suffering.

Prime Minister Howard has also reportedly raised the spectre of increasing the retirement age for the age pension.

He told the Press Club last August 'I think we do have to face the need as a community ... for people to remain in the workforce longer.' (Press Club Address, 1 August 2001).

This suggests he is contemplating a new lift in the age pension age.

By deferring people's retirements indefinitely he can justify taking the knife to pensions.

"I do believe very strongly that this is a neglected area of change," he added at the time.

Labor said during the election campaign that the Howard Government has been responsible for well over $5 billion in cuts to social welfare since 1996.

Given the Government's pork barrelling during the election campaign and the resultant drastic depletion of the budget surplus, there seems little likelihood of any policy initiatives to assist the elderly or to address the issue of the savings regime in Australia in a meaningful way.

With the so-called mutual obligation farce about to be extended to the unemployed up to 49 years of age (commencing next year), burgeoning unemployment amongst the young and the old, and the not-far-off introduction of 'mutual obligation' for those unemployed over 50 (due in 2003), there is also little prospect of there being anyone left earning sufficient wages to be able to save at all.

One has to wonder what our forefathers fought for in the last century.