The federal Opposition and the Greens have condemned moves by the Coalition government to change the aged pension.
Of particular concern, they say, are measures which would mean a significant reduction in the pension for many Australians from migrant backgrounds.
Shadow Minister for Families, Jenny Macklin and Shadow Minister for Citizenship and Multiculturalism, Michelle Rowland claim that the Turnbull government is cutting the pension for elderly pensioners who need to travel overseas.
President of Greek Friends of Labor-Hellenic Caucus, George Houssos, also slammed Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s plan to deny pensioners the right to travel for more than six weeks without having their hard-earned pensions cut.
“This is an absolute insult to the people who built this country,” said Mr Houssos.
“Restricting members of the Greek and other migrant communities of their freedom in their retirement shows the Liberals simply do not understand ethnic communities,” said Mr Houssos.
The Social Services Legislation Amendment (Budget Repair) Bill 2015 passed the House of Representatives last week and makes it harder for migrant pensioners to continue to receive their pension while they are overseas.
Currently, pensioners can stay overseas for 26 weeks and receive their full pension. Following that time, the pension is reduced to a rate that depends on the number of years they have worked in Australia.
Under the Turnbull government’s changes, from 1 January 2017 pensioners will have their pension cut after just six weeks.
Labor Candidate for Chisholm Stefanie Perri said the change will disadvantage thousands of elderly Greek and other migrant pensioners in Chisholm who will now be unfairly penalised for visiting their families back home.
“Many pensioners living in our community moved to Australia with nothing, they worked hard, paid their taxes, built new lives and raised families. They helped make our community a better place and they deserve their pensions,” Ms Perri said.
“I know many elderly people throughout our community who have waited decades for the chance to make an extended trip back to where they were born, to see loved ones and reconnect with the families they don’t often get to see.
“They are entitled to visit their families and they have a right to receive their full pension while they do,” Ms Perri said.
Labor voted against the cut to pensions and says it will continue to fight this unfair change.
“Sadly this is just the most recent assault the Liberals have made on pensioners; they’ve made it harder to receive a part pension, they’ve cut concessions for pensioners and they’ve increased the pension age to 70, the oldest in the world,” Ms Perri said.
“I will stand up for the rights of pensioners in our community to be treated fairly.”
Michael O’Neill, the chief executive of an advocacy group for older Australians, Nationals Australia, says it is unfair.
“It would, in my view, be very difficult, for example, to see how you differentiate between someone who’s lived and worked in this country for 25 or 30 years. That’s a very significant contribution. And to just rule the line at 35 years seems to be very unfair to people in those circumstances of quite long contributions,” said Mr O’Neill.
Greens treasury spokesman Adam Bandt agrees.
“We’ve got a large number of people in my electorate who came to Australia many, many years ago from Greek communities, Italian communities, Vietnamese communities, who are now reaching the ends of their – or have reached the end of their – work life and presumed that, if they did the right thing here, that they would be able to get the pension and then enjoy it as they saw fit, and they’re going to be hit hard. And given that around 40 per cent of aged pensioners weren’t born in Australia, this is a measure that’s going to impact on a lot of people,” he said.
Labor’s pensions and families spokeswoman, Jenny Macklin, says the Opposition, too, opposes the proposals.
“We understand that, for many pensioners, they’ve saved up for years and years to go on one big trip in their retirement. Other people who’ve contacted us are wanting to visit family and friends. Some migrant pensioners, of course, need to go and see their families as they are getting much older, and we know that people have worked very, very hard all of their lives and deserve respect at this time of their retirement,” said Jenny Macklin.
The Greek Orthodox Community of New South Wales opposes these changes as discriminatory and unfair.
It says a public meeting will shortly be called to give the community an opportunity to express its views on these issues and others that vitally affect them.
