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2008
The Parliament of the
Commonwealth of Australia
THE SENATE
Presented and read a first time
Urgent Relief for Single Age Pensioners Bill 2008
No. , 2008
(Senator Coonan)
A Bill for an Act to amend the Social Security Act 1991 and the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 to increase payments to single age pensioners by $30 per week, and for related purposes
Contents
1............ Short title............................................................................................. 1
2............ Commencement................................................................................... 1
3............ Objects................................................................................................ 1
4............ Schedule(s)......................................................................................... 2
Schedule 1—Urgent relief for single age pensioners 3
Social Security Act 1991 3
Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 4
A Bill for an Act to amend the Social Security Act 1991 and the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 to increase payments to single age pensioners by $30 per week, and for related purposes
The Parliament of Australia enacts:
This Act may be cited as the Urgent Relief for Single Age Pensioners Act 2008 .
This Act commences, or is taken to have commenced, on 20 September 2008.
Recognising that the Government:
(a) has acknowledged that it is virtually impossible for single age pensioners to meet essential expenses on the current pension rate, yet has refused to act and instead expects struggling pensioners to wait until yet another review is completed;
(b) has a responsibility to act immediately to ensure that the entire pension payment system appropriately addresses these pressures;
the objects of this Act are to:
(c) increase the single age pension, single age service pension and the Widow B pension by $30 per week;
(d) provide immediate relief to single age pensioners, single age service pensioners and Widow B pensioners struggling with rising cost of living pressures;
(e) provide the first step in ensuring that the Government acts immediately and accepts its responsibilities to take the urgent action required to assist all pensioners.
Each Act that is specified in a Schedule to this Act is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this Act has effect according to its terms.