January pension changes

aussietraveller · Guru

January pension changes

2weis · Senior Member

no its not but we elected them and allow them to set the rules
brian

Gaylehere · Guru

I could open my mouth and put my foot in it, but don't think it is fair.

Desert Dweller · Guru

We've lost around $120 per fortnight but who cares, we can afford it, that's what the adjustment was all about.
We appreciate having a part pension to supplement our superannuation, with all the government fringe benefits like cheap car registration & prescriptions.
Increases for ''lower spectrum folk'' & decreases for more ''well healed folk'' is a good idea.
It's quite acceptable on our part. We're not looking for a ''free ride''. Some might be.

brickies · Guru

This post should not have been posted , I am sure if you read the rule you would not have posted this .

adreamer · Senior Member

Do you know someone that sit's on the dole doing nothing? a single mother with two or more kids with different fathers, a disability pensioner who has had a bad back for 20 or more years?

Yes, I know there are genuine people doing it hard but for the ones who are not someone has to pay.

This is a good and fair Government and we should be grateful to live in this great Country. A Land of plenty!!

Helen

adreamer · Senior Member

brickies wrote:
This post should not have been posted , I am sure if you read the rule you would not have posted this .

Pray tell!! Why not??

rockylizard · Guru

adreamer wrote:
brickies wrote:
This post should not have been posted , I am sure if you read the rule you would not have posted this .
Pray tell!! Why not??

Gday...

.....because it is in the Forum Rules -

Although the Grey Nomads forum is focused on issues affecting the grey nomad lifestyle, discussions do sometimes meander into other areas of general interest, particularly in our I Digress section. We do however ask that members avoid discussion of politics and religion as experience has taught us that these issues can lead to bad feeling and this is, above all, a positive forum.

Read all about it here -

http://thegreynomads.activeboard.com/t53677007/welcome-and-forum-rules/

Cheers - John

Bas + Eve · Senior Member

I thought the post was about the politicians entitlements? The Gold card has still not been scrapped either. Rules for one rules for others. Grossly unfair.

We certainly did not vote for a Turnbull led Govt. He knifed his way to the position. A sitting Prime Minister who swore his allegiance to the Monarch, guest speaker at the republican movement conference. disgrace and an insult.

Bas + Eve · Senior Member

No lets not discuss politics or religion as it may offend some "poor" old dears. Happy "Holidays" as the word Christmas could upset some people.

rockylizard · Guru

Bas + Eve wrote:
No lets not discuss politics or religion as it may offend some "poor" old dears. Happy "Holidays" as the word Christmas could upset some people.

Gday...

confuse sorry Bas confuse wot's it gotta do wif that ? confuse

Cheers - John

ballast2 · Guru

G'day. My 2 bobs worth. I loose nothing. I must be poor. Cheers.

aussietraveller · Guru

My comment was never intended to be about politics, it was about the issue of two sets of rules and the people involved in politics who rort this country for everything they can get, something similar to major corporates who pay very little or no tax, like some others here I have no problem paying my own.

Bas + Eve · Senior Member

Unions Churches or some so called charities pay no tax either!

The Belmont Bear · Guru

I agree with the OP politicians regardless of their political bias are responsible for making the laws - obviously they are going to make them to benefit their own self interests. After a few terms in office they will probably award themselves with an MBE, OBE or something similar as recognition of their untiring service to the people and return to their old profession or some other government appointment with a lifelong pension. I am not trying to be critical of either side of politics here just on a system that allows certain people in our society to get away with rorting the system at the expense of others. You are correct 2weis we elected them but I'm not sure that it was ever on a platform of setting up their own pension plan with such generous benefits, they did that off their own bat once they got in.

Bas + Eve with all respect you have no idea who I nor anyone else voted for so when you make those sort of comments use I rather than "we" - better still don't make them at all ....This is why both John & brickies pointed out that political discussions are avoided on this forum because if someone makes an inflammatory comment like yours, someone else will retaliate, others will buy in and eventually it will degenerate into some sort of personal attack.

Desert Dweller · Guru

Australia is one of a very few countries in the world that has THREE levels of government (federal, state & local), therefore we have more freeloaders (politicians) than most other countries.

macka17 · Guru

We only need Federal and Councils.

ALL States Pollies should be sacked.
And most of the others too. Start afresh.
Wages. Pensions, allowances. All the retired's "allowances" stopped too.
That'd free up a few tax payers dollars.

In one fell swoop. Every State would have the same rules, regulations. and measurements.
Use the most sensible ones from each State.

Wouldn't that make things simpler, hey.
It'd be worth it for that fact alone.

ALL the one. NO legal borders.

The Belmont Bear · Guru

It's even worse than that DD we have two houses in the federal government - house of reps. and the Senate (NZ only has one). Why do we need a Senate to sign off on bills that are introduced by our elected representatives in the lower house ?

Bas + Eve · Senior Member

"We" is a generic term used in the cumulative to mean Australians. Sheez

Bryan · Guru

Bas + Eve wrote:
Unions Churches or some so called charities pay no tax either!

Can add to that some major corporations.

Roving-Dutchy · Guru

Getting rid of our State governments is never going to happen, they would never be willing to give up their places at the trough.
Cheers
David

PeterD · Guru

brickies wrote:
This post should not have been posted , I am sure if you read the rule you would not have posted this .

Are you referring to the OP or just the reply above yours?

Papou · Senior Member

Jayzus , Joseph n Mary Begorah !!!! dont yez know the Polllies entitlements /Pensions are GURANTTED NO MATTER WHAT!!!, If they dont rob your piggybank to get to it where the heck else can the put their mits on to get it ???after all the country is running out of $$$ for everything else ey :)...

PeterD · Guru

aussietraveller wrote:
I find it a bit hard to believe that politicians are exempt from this new law so not only can they retire from politics at any age after 2 terms and recieve a pension for life no matter how much they earn, classic example is our ex treasurer who gets a ministerial pension and is Ambassador to the USA.

Aussie, I think you have your knickers in a knot. You are mixing up two different things. Firstly this "new law" does apply to them. However it will not effect many of them as most ex pollies are either too young to get the old age pension or too much in assets to get an OAP.

When you say "and recieve a pension for life no matter how much they earn," you are referring to something outside of the scope of "the new law." What you are referring to there is superannuation and not the subject of the "new law" (ie the OAP.) Please get your facts straight.

I am in the same boat (but not affected because of lack of income and assets.) I receive a CSS annuity, some self funded super and a part OPA. Those that are in my situation and have higher levels of total income or assets could have their OAP adjusted but their annuity and/or self funded super would not be be affected.

If you think that the pollies have not curtailed ex members entitlements then think again. There was a severe change in their super for members elected after October 2004. Prior to that if a member or senator served six or more years then they all got the same lucrative superannuation benefit - Superannuation benefits for senators and members. In that document you will see:

Parliamentarians elected for the first time at the 2004 election, however, will be eligible for benefits under the Parliamentary Superannuation Act 2004. Newly-elected parliamentarians will nominate a complying superannuation fund into which contributions of 15.4 per cent will be made by the government on their behalf. These arrangements have the stated aim of bringing superannuation arrangements for parliamentarians in line with current community standards of superannuation arrangements in the Commonwealth Public Sector

That superannuation scheme is similar to the PSS scheme which was introduced in 1984 and not as good a scheme as the CSS I am on. The PSS was further curtailed since 1984.

aussietraveller · Guru

Peter D
not sure why you are being so aggressive, but the point that I am trying to make is all pensioners in Australia are going to be assessed against the new law no matter what year they first got their pension.

Peter you are absolutely right when you say I am referring to something outside the scope of the new Law and that's my issue with this, the politicians no matter when they became eligible for their pension their entitlements, are based on them being exempt from the new law which commences in January and I believe all Australians should be treated equally under Law, weather you call it Superannuation or Pension they are definitely better off than anybody else which is a very different level of equality to the one I was thinking about.

And I dont think my nickers are knotted if they are I am certainly not experiencing any pain at the moment, other than the discomfort that all members feel when posts get personal.

macka17 · Guru

Don's ASK the State Pollies.
Just vote in Federal Parliament to make ALL State political departments Obsolete.
and all members of, now members of the unemployed
with ALL perks and long term fiddles revoked

Have a countrywide referendum on the matter..

There was a survey a few yrs ago.
About the numbers of policians per head in this country.
Compared to some other countrys.

Too many snouts in too many troughs methink's. Remove the troughs.
They'll disappear all by themselves then.

TheHeaths · Guru

Aussietraveller,

I think PeterD's point is this.

The politicians "pension" is not a pension as understood like the OAP, it is a pension as per an Allocated Pension from Superannuation that they and their employer contribute into. That is a different type of pension entitlement entirely.

The new law re OAP DOES apply to the politicians, and means they cannot get the OAP and will live off of their Superannuation Allocated pension. That is how it should be, and is for many of us as well, who will not qualify for the OAP due to Superannuation and assets.

That said, the size of pension they receive, and the ability to work while receiving it, as per Joe Hockey and others, is a different argument, and is generally not available to the general public. That is however, outside the discussion of the effect of the January changes.

Baz and Eve, unfortunately or otherwise, Australia DID in fact vote for a Turnbull led Govt in July. He ousted Abbott well before that, and had the subsequent election.

Bruce and Bev · Guru

already posted this idea elsewhere...........sack all the pollies, bring ex NZ PM John Keys as CEO. Let him run the country and we'll get back to surplus rather than a half a trillion $ debt. NZ has posted a $1.88B surplus and all they have are tourists, sheep (less than Aust now has) and cattle. No iron, no coal, no oil or gas or precious metals.

On the TV news this morning, in the past 15 years, NZ has had 2 PM's - we've had 5 (including Rudd for 2 times)

Guess this thread will be closed soon anyway as Brickies is correct in his post

hino motorhome · Veteran Member

I couldn't agree more macka but it would take every state to agree, politicians aren't going to vote them selves out of a job, ask any politicians and they will tell you that they are in it to make this a better country if that were true then they would vote to get rid of the states they belong in the past, they don't want vote themselves out so they are getting rid of local councils as it is some councils are being overtaken by political parties here in Victoria, we can't wait to retire and get out of this state but where to go??? 4months to go regards

dogbox · Guru

If this is about politics and not about how the new rules will affect some then there are a lot of other subjects should be closed including some in the joke section

the young working people coming thru the ranks now in most cases will not have access to the oap as they will have to survive on there super pensions/assets like the politicians