“Lend me your ears!” What seniors really want
Election day is drawing near and could result in a change of government and in a hung parliament. What you want and how you vote can make all the difference.
With the balance of power in question, the 2025 Federal Election is an opportunity for all parties and candidates to let older Australians know they hear their needs and concerns, and are prepared to act to improve their lives.
As a peak body working hard to represent seniors’ concerns, National Seniors Australia (NSA) will be reminding parties and candidates of our mandate, while also outlining our key policy recommendations.
Our election manifesto contains several key policy recommendations, which can be read here.
It is a surprising and pleasing feature of our political climate that there is broad agreement on the need for key reforms across crucial service areas.
As NSA chief executive officer Chris Grice says, “National Seniors Australia’s election priorities target three key policy themes—cost of living, health and aged care, and banking and superannuation.
“NSA has selected several key policy recommendations that represent the diverse interests of the broader seniors’ population. These policies are practical and achievable and will improve the lives of older people, whether they are pensioners, part-pensioners, self-funded retirees, or pre-retirees,” Mr Grice says.
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Having adequate income in retirement is a real concern for seniors.
Rising living costs are making older people worried, especially those with limited savings or with ongoing housing costs.
Some choose to work to supplement their pension, but as we know, many find the pension rules draconian and confusing.
That’s why we continue to call for an exemption of income from the Age Pension income test.
It’s not for everyone, but if you want or need to work, you shouldn’t have to jump through hoops at Centrelink and lose 50c in the dollar of your pension if you do.
There is a real chance that we can get this change, with the Opposition already committing to a doubling of the Work Bonus.
However, we want candidates to go further and commit to exempting all work income from the income test, if elected.
We are also pushing for a continuation of the freeze on deeming rates to avoid further cost-of-living pain.
While interest rates have only just begun to fall as inflation gets under control, it is unlikely the cash rate will fall quickly.
Deeming rates, which are used to calculate the Age Pension rate to determine eligibility for the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card and are used in aged care calculations, could rise if a freeze is lifted.
This will mean a drop in real income for pensioners from 1 July 2025 at a time that older people continue to struggle to make ends meet. That’s right, if deeming rates increase, pensioners will get less pension.
The rate should continue to be frozen and a more reasonable method for setting deeming rates should be implemented.
NSA supports going back to the method used prior to 2012 when the upper rate tracked along with the cash rate (see the deeming rate graph on the right for more details).
As adviser to former US President Jimmy Carter was fond of saying, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!”
And that’s what we are asking when it comes to one of the most important parts of many retirees’ life—superannuation.
We want all parties and candidates to continue to give older people choice, control, certainty, and confidence to invest and spend their superannuation without having to watch over their shoulder.
We are arguing for a pause in the nigh constant attacks on the integrity of super, to restore people’s faith in the system.
Constant changes make it harder for older people to feel confident about their future and means they are less likely to spend and enjoy later life or to donate and pass on their wealth to charities or future generations.
We want candidates to commit to a moratorium on substantive changes to superannuation, to rule out egregious inheritance taxes and to provide incentives for retirees to gift (more) to charities and future generations.
Face-to-face banking is an essential part of the banking system. However, bank closures, especially in regional, remote, and rural areas, are making it difficult.
The shift to online banking and the exit of banks can greatly affect those who are digitally illiterate, vulnerable, or simply need face-to-face support for complex banking issues (e.g., deceased estates).
Australia Post, which is still operating in most country towns, could help fill the gap if it becomes a real bank.
We support post offices taking on a greater financial services role, and recommend this be funded by a bank levy which was recently proposed by Treasury.
This would assist Australia Post to obtain an authorised deposit taking institution (ADI) licence to provide essential banking services in areas where these do not exist.
Our election manifesto includes calls for more home care places and a review of private health costs. You can read all about these on our 2025 election page.
This article is featured in National Seniors Australia’s quarterly member magazine, Our Generation.
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