Changes to the Council Rate Concession for Pensioners

When the Abbott Liberal Government delivered its budget on 13 May 2014, the impact on South Australians was significant and immediate. The Abbott Liberal Government made deep cuts to Federal Government funding to health, education, and pensioner concessions.

These cuts total $898 million over the next four years;

In preparing the State Budget, our Government was faced with tough decisions to ensure that our State’s finances remain sound but also to protect those most in need.

As such, we stepped in for 12 months to protect pensioners from the Abbott Liberal Government’s cruel cuts and scrapping of their contribution of $30 million per year towards pensioners’ concessions.

Our Government has joined with the community to campaign for the Abbott Liberal Government to reinstate this funding, which forms part of the $898 million worth of cuts, through our Federal Cuts Hurt campaign. The LGA has also lobbied the Federal Government.

Following the December 2014 Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook, the Abbott Liberal Government failed to reinstate the funding.

We will continue to fight these cuts to our State, however if the Abbott Government refuses to reverse its funding cuts, the State Government council rate concession will not be provided from 1 July 2015.

As such, I urge you to get in contact with your Federal Member of Parliament to urge the Federal Government to reinstate funding to South Australia for health, education and pensioner concessions.

Unlike the Abbott Government, this State Government honoured its election commitment to pensioners. In the 2014-15 State Budget, the State Government increased the energy and the medical heating and cooling concession for pensioners by $50, which increased the maximum concession to $215 per annum.

No matter how hard the Abbott Liberal Government tries, they cannot hide from the fact that the Abbott Liberal Government is cutting pensioner concessions.

The cuts are real and affect the most vulnerable members of our community.

See the latest video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMzYMmSNXT0

You can join the Federal Cuts Hurt campaign here: http://federalcutshurt.com.au/

If you would like to discuss this, or any matter further please contact my office on 8268 2680 or via email or our contact page

Further reading;

Standing up for pensioners and low income earners (PDF 337KB)