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NewsOpen letter to the Prime Minister of Australia, the Hon Malcolm Turnbull
Open letter to the Prime Minister of Australia, the Hon Malcolm Turnbull

Open letter to the Prime Minister of Australia, the Hon Malcolm Turnbull

Dear Malcolm,

As a sixty year-old who is now our prime minister may I congratulate you, at least on behalf of some of our 130,000 members, on your sudden elevation and commend the benefits of joining the FiftyUp Club.

The snap poll alongside this letter on the website may give you some idea as to your current popularity amongst the members who have previously told they are predominantly coalition supporters.

We’re in the midst of the Fair Go For Fifty Ups campaign which seeks to highlight the cost of living issues, pressures and even solutions facing one in five Australians.

Given we are a powerful electoral force and issues such as retirement incomes, tax and GST, health spending and insurance are the bread and butter of politics I thought you might be interested in some interim findings.

It’s our intention to bundle up the 16,000 responses so far, which include some robust statistics and pithy comments, and present them to politicians in Canberra next month. Perhaps you’ll be free?

When it comes to state politicians in particular eyeing off an increasing the GST we are clearly split down the middle.

While 46% say absolutely no change to the system another 46% do support increases to the 10% rate and/or to the base of goods and services on which it is levied.

Another contentious issue under increasing debate is whether the family home should be included in the pension assets test.

When asked what policy was most important to their family situation 42% nominated the family home exemption followed by 15% choosing no changes to superannuation taxes.

Given your predecessor promised there’d be no changes to super in his administration many of us might be forgiven for wondering if this remains the case.

Finally with health lobby groups calling for a review of private health insurance, and the government reportedly due to call one soon, we’d love to know where you stand.

When you were last in charge of the party in 2009 you may recall using your budget reply speech to reject Labor’s means testing of this insurance.

The scrapping of the means test remains seemingly unaffordable but it would be popular with the 51% of our respondents finding it hard to afford but ‘not prepared to go without it’.

Another 16% have had to cancel their cover because it has become a ‘luxury’.

Please consider the above and we shall forward the final poll results as soon as they are in,

 

 Yours Sincerely,

Christopher Zinn

Fifty Up Club Spokesperson

Originally posted on .

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Open letter to the Prime Minister of Australia, the Hon Malcolm Turnbull

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Someone
Someone from NSW commented:

Really think the government is doing nothing for the ageing population who worked all there lives. They make it harder to get pensions etc not everyone of our age had superannuation from there jobs yes if you were in a government job but people who just worked normal jobs not high flying jobs just lived within their means & brought up families & paid our taxes now we are penalised for that. Do something for the people who helped this country before it's too late 

Lynda
Lynda from QLD commented:

Yes Unfortunately they elect the Leader...BUT...when they want to change the elected leader, they should have to take it to the people 

nancy
nancy from NSW commented:

PERSONALLY, I DO NOT THINK YOU GIVE A RATS WHAT 50 UPS OR ANYONE THINKS, ONLY WHAT YOU WANT AND DEFINITELY NOT FOR THE BENEFIT OF AUSTRALIA AND AUSTRALIANS. I AM 76 HAVE NEVER RECEIVED A BENEFIT EXCEPT FOR CHILD ENDOWNMENT, I AM SO FRUGAL, I AM MISERABLE, WHAT ABOUT A SMART PHONE,WHITEGOODS, ETC.FOR THE LIKES OF PEOPLE LIKE MYSELF WHO HAVE WORKED SINCE THEY WERE 15 OR MAYBE ALL THIS TALK ABOUT FREEBEES FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS IS NOT TRUE, YES OR NO? WHAT HAVE THEY OR WILL THEY CONTRIBUTE, NOTHING, I EXPECT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

paul
paul from QLD commented:

Pensions need to be bigger . and politicians wages smaller and on retirement treated like all other australians who have to live off their superanuations & pensions , and not allowed by law to have any more jobs. 

Ed
Ed from NSW commented:

What Malcolm Turnbull said on the occasion of Kevin Rudd being shafted from the top job........ "The betrayal of you as leader of your party was one of the most shocking events I have ever witnessed. I think it would be one of the most shocking events any of us have ever witnessed in politics—the scale of it. The idea that the man who had won, in this presidential campaign, an election against John Howard was then going to be disposed of, discarded like another course on a lazy Susan in a Vietnamese restaurant—the cruelty of it was extraordinary!" And then does the same to the elected PM of his own party......despicable! 

David
David from NSW commented:

Most people in the over sixty age group have worked bloody hard to get what we have got. What today's polititions have got to realise that in these early days of our employment there was no such thing as compulsory superannuation from the employer. We worked week to week to support our families. I worked three jobs to save for a deposit for our first home, whilst my wife stayed at home to raise children. In my opinion we have more than payed our taxes etc. over this period of time to help make Australia such a great country it now is. My request to you Malcom Turnbull as our Prime Minister, is to get your fellow polititions out and about the good older Aussie People. You may just then realise how many people are finding it hard to make ends meet on a small pension. It is my opinion also that all Australians should be rewarded equally along with all refugees that the government is bringing into our country. We have so much unemployment at the moment in Austalia, and a lot of Australians are finding it difficult to find jobs through these so called employment agencies. Most of these agencies are only crunching the numbers for their own benefit and reward, and actually do not have any jobs to offer. This is disappointing and frustrating 

Someone
Someone from NSW commented:

Most people go to gaol for a coward` King Hit. Whatever happened to our Democracy? The people put Tony Abbott in, it is up to us to choose another Prime Minister. This ousting of Leaders is becoming some what of a trend in recent years. Youd better make this fiasco worth our while, Turncoat!!! Julie from NSW 

len
len from NSW commented:

I am 78 years old and in my life I have never see the likes of fraud and thievry as I have with this lot of politician as I have now I was let to believe that the Government was there for the people and to listen to their concerns not the people to work for the government. and keep them financely secure for the rest of their lives My advice to to you Mr Turncoat is to get out as you cant be trusted 

Grazyna
Grazyna from NSW commented:

only in Australia during 5 years...4 Prime Ministers...all of them.. big jokers..nevera keep promises to people but....fill up they own pockets with lots of Money. Legal ...SCAMMERS ????? 

Alan
Alan from QLD commented:

why do not government support the medical forced reduntancy workers who are approaching 55 to 60 yrs old australian people before helping and sending millions overseas to other countrys AUstralian poeple who need assistance are being forgotten amost centrelinks welfare supprt to overseas and illegal immigrants support should be channelled to austalian low income people mysdlf and wife have vast mddical conditions and recieve no income yet we asa couple are recieving only 600 a fortnight as a couple dosent even cover our rent were is the tax welfare that i worked over 40 yrs for we need assistance yet have recieved none in 2 yrs since i finished work on a medical seperation. POlticians on both sides do not care they make people feel helpless and a mental depression sets in for our future.Ifeel sicken that our government have forgotten the low income people who voted for them and payed our bills and taxes for our working lives.I Employ help those in need in our country first where do other cou ntries assist us in need from natural disaster times .WE give our natural resourses away for a song in a bundance why?our homes and land are getting foreign owned most of our business are all forgien owned.Earn your big pay packets and action onto australian low struggling unemployed people first not foreign sources.we send too much money off shores assist us to overcome centrelinks barriers of assistance Voting is complosary, suitable living welfare should be also we ask for a real fair assistance from a depressed medical unfit person who is fighting a losing battle to remain indepe dant and not homeless like many austalians are heady espcially the mature aged people 

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