Time to give the over 50's a voice in budget debates on tax, retirement and work

So agree with most of what that survey said. I don't, however, believe that the Government is doing enough to encourage business to employ older workers. I have been looking (applying for around 5 jobs a week) for work for over a year. Tying the $10,000 to older workers who come off a Centrelink bnefit doesn't help anyone, except Centrelink. With all the brillianat minds we have in Australia, can't someone come up with a scheme that actually works. For all our experience and willingness to work, we are looked at as some sort of dinosaur who shouldn't sully their offices. I'm even retraining myself to help in the search but it doesn't seem to make any difference. 

In Question 11 we are asked about adding GST to fresh fruit and private school fees. Trick question? One is a necessity, the other is not. So how could we possibly answer that as one question. No, GST should NOT be sdded to fresh food (or school lunches), and either it should be added to private school fees for those who can afford private schools, or return to the previous system where the Government only provided funding for State Schools or Government Educational Institutions. The latter would be preferable as, if GST were added to private school fees, it might only be a matter of time before GST was added to Government school fees as well. Members of Parliament are paid from the public purse. Here we are discussing pensioners which include some members of the community who are totally dependant on their pension, while retired Parliamentarians receive ongoing side benefits, such as travel etc, for life. Why? And with pensioners waiting 6 months for free dental treatment, why are self-funded retirees entitled to the same when they can go elsewhere. There are many ways of fixing the budget without attacking those that made this country what it is today. 

Time to look at parliamentarian's super and perks. We have 5 former primer being supported by the public purse. Each time a persons retires from parliament he takes a huge payout. 

At least this survey has a variety of answers not just responses to achieve the result desired. Just love anonymity. 

Negative gearing should be limited to one property. Foreign buyers of property should NOT be allowed to buy as they are today. Politicians have to come to a better arrangement to protect our interests. There are many problems which have arisen because of this arrangement and as always they (the politicians and bureaucrats) don't seem to be able to get it right. All they worry about is developers and real estate agents. And off course the huge amount of Stamp Duty which is collected by the State Governments. Superannuation is too generous with the tax arrangements. It should be limited so that workers on high salaries pay their share of tax. There is far too much paid out for child care, family tax benefits, baby bonus, wealthy pensioners, public servants benefits should be given a good overhaul as they are far too generous. Politicians have to be pulled into line along with the rest of the workforce and brought back to the same working conditions as everybody else and that also goes for Governor General and Governors with their over generous benefits. Why should they be paid a pension or superannuation. Overspending by politicians also should be more accountable. If the treasurers for Local Council, State and Federal bodies started cost cutting we wouldn't have to worry for too long about the economy. 

I totally agree with Margaret from NSW. I am in the same position and have experienced the same lack of support the Govt feels is now necessary for the following generations. We managed because we were more prudent with our money, we didn't buy on credit what we couldn't afford. We both worked and saved to buy a house before having children and if we couldn't afford to not work we stayed working. I have never been supported by the govt. with the exception of the child allowance and I do not wish my retirement money to be restricted or controlled (as frugal as it will have to be) because of the excesses of our current and previous govt's. The reason we have so many refugees and immigrants applying to reside in Australia is because Australia is a soft touch. We hand out welfare like we have a endless monetary resource but when us tough baby boomers and the generation after that aren't working and paying our taxes and being circumspect with our money instead of wracking up huge debts on credit cards for the latest it gadgets or loans for new cars, furniture and even a house that we all know as soon as something goes wrong financially will not be able to afford or continue to pay. I feel terribly sorry for the people going on to the pension now who don't have their own home for whatever reason and have to rely on renting out of their measly pension and the cost of living is going up with the supermarkets gouging customers and the farmers that supply them. The economy is in a terribly mess and I will have to hang on to my job for as long as I can sustain working and probably well past my retirement age and yet I have contributed all my life and have to rely upon politicians, who will have a golden handshake when they retire, to tell me how much I can live on and why I should be able to access my super so that they can control MY spending. That's rich. Not happy Jan!! 

Of course any changes to super and negative gearing has been ruled out in the past few days as its beneficiaries and proponents are too strong a lobby; Battlers and Wage Earners do not have the income or resources to avail themselves of this largess. The current home exemption for the pension asset test should be capped at $1Million with any excess valuation added to total assets test for the pension. GST on food, education, medical, etc. would be an obscenity, however, the current 10% rate should be adjusted to 15 or 20% provided the States eliminated the taxes / fees they were supposed to in the first instance, eg. stamp duty and all the 'slight of hand' they so love. 

Politicians should set an example by significantly reducing their own salaries and re-evaluating their own very generous pensions and benefits. 

As a disability pensioner,i was given a $3.00 p/w pension rise this year in march.How do the government sleep at night when they are putting us deeper into lower class citizens.I never ask for much in my life,but this rise is an absolute disgrace to all disability pensioners,considering they get obscene pensions,freebies,cars, free flights,government cars,and they cry poor. 

Another aspect I think should be looked at is when people buy multi million dollar homes and get the pension. They should be compelled to draw against the value of the house above a certain level BEFORE they can access the pension.