I move:

That the Senate—

  (a)   notes that:

     (i)   today, due to the differences in the types of indexation, pensions will go up by $17.10 while allowances will only increase by $2.90, and

     (ii)   indexation against the consumer price index alone keeps Newstart so low it cannot adequately meet the true increases in the cost of living; and

  (b)   urges the Government to take immediate steps to appropriately index Newstart at the same rate as the pension to prevent an ever-widening gap.