Senator FAULKNER (Leader of the Opposition in the Senate)(3.20 p.m.) —I am not surprised that the Minister for Social Security (Senator Newman) is so defensive and so concerned about this debate, because it is an extraordinarily cruel policy measure that has been proposed by this government. Senator Newman referred earlier in question time to the fact that many people in the community are scared about this measure. They are scared, and they are right to be scared by this measure.

Senator Newman —You are wicked!

Senator FAULKNER —It is not wicked, Senator; it is a fact that what you have determined in this budget will lead to a reduction in benefits for older unemployed Australians. That is a fact. Of course, prior to this budget super assets held by people over the age of 55 who lost their jobs or who could not work because of sickness or disability were exempt from the income and assets test on social security payments. This encouraged those people to preserve their super—usually, of course, super in small amounts. They could preserve their super until they reached pension age. That was the situation. They got the most out of their superannuation and maximised their income once they reached retiring age.

The situation proposed by this government is that super assets are no longer exempt. That saves this mean minded, mean spirited, cruel government $225 million. This means that 54,500 people, mainly people on mature age allowance, will have their payments reduced, and that 12,900 people, mainly on disability support pension, will have their payments cancelled. That is what this budget measure means.

Counting superannuation assets under the income assets test means that you will have to work out how you survive on a much lower payment or draw on your super early. If you are forced to draw on your income stream from your superannuation at that age, you will have to sign a statutory declaration stating that you are retired even if you genuinely would like to engage in some form of employment at a later stage.

It is quite obvious, even to the economic illiterates on the other side of this chamber, that this sort of short-sighted policy of spend your superannuation now does obviously diminish national savings. So this is a cruel and very mean minded measure from this government. We have a situation where there is a very significant reduction in benefits for older Australians. It really underscores the meanness of Mr Howard's and Mr Costello's budget. It really underscores the mean mindedness of the Liberal Party. The measure jeopardises the superannuation of those whose jobs are at risk.

I say to the Senate that the callousness of the Howard-Costello budget, the mean minded callousness of this budget, is demonstrated by this budget measure alone. You stand condemned for what you have perpetrated on older Australians.