Shayne Neumann (Blair, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Industry and Innovation and Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency. Will the minister update the House on the Household Assistance Package for pensioners and working people in respect of the carbon price? How have these changes contained in the package to income tax and pensions been received by the community?

Greg Combet (Charlton, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Blair for his question, because the government, in implementing the carbon price, has done it in an economically responsible way, a way that is environmentally effective and that is socially fair. The Household Assistance Package that is funded from the carbon price features a number of elements, one of which is the Clean Energy Supplement that commences for pensioners today.

As we have heard from the Prime Minister and my colleague ministers in question time, the new Clean Energy Supplement, starting today, paid alongside the age pension, is worth an extra $13.50 per fortnight for single pensioners and $20.40 a fortnight for couples combined. I want to stress to pensioners around the country that those extra payments are permanent and they will increase over time—entirely contrary to the position that was advocated by the Leader of the Opposition, repeatedly, in a deceitful way, to pensioners over many months. Those payments are permanent and will increase over time. And the only risk to that is the coalition, because the coalition is committed to taking those things off pensioners. Their position is to get rid of those payments.

The clean energy supplements that I refer to come on top of historic reforms to the pension that are classic Labor reforms to help people who need help the most in the community. All up, a single pensioner today is receiving $207 more per fortnight than they did in September 2009 when we made significant changes. This is a massive assistance to pensioners around the country trying to cope with the cost of living. It is a massive help to people.

As Westpac said last December, the carbon price, in fact, contrary to all the rubbish put about by the Leader of the Opposition, has had no lasting impact on the CPI, and a minimal impact compared to the introduction of the GST by the coalition. It is all in stark contrast to all of the ridiculous and ludicrous prophecies made by the coalition and its leader, the member for Warringah. When you look at the facts again, the CPI is at the bottom end of the RBA target range and stands at 2.2 per cent.

The opposition leader has done nothing but try to harvest votes by spreading fear amongst pensioners and other members of the community in a completely gutless performance—a totally disreputable performance. Their policy position, make no mistake, is to take this money off pensioners, just as it is to take money off seven million taxpayers by cutting the tax-free threshold.