Mrs PHILLIPS (Gilmore) (14:31): My question is to the Minister for Social Services. What is the Albanese Labor government doing to help Australian pensioners deal with the cost of living?
Ms RISHWORTH (Kingston—Minister for Social Services) (14:32): I thank the Member for Gilmore for the question. I know the Member for Gilmore has been a strong advocate for pensioners in her electorate. Of course, this government knows that pensioners and those on social security payments are facing cost-of-living pressures. That's why it's so important that we, as a government, give them every little bit of help we can.
Today our government has announced extra cost-of-living relief for those on social security payments. Under this announcement, from 20 September, 4.7 million Australians will receive a much-needed boost to their payments. This will be the largest increase to allowances in more than 30 years, and, of course, the largest increase in 12 years for pensioners.
It will also apply to rent assistance. This means that the maximum rate of the pension for single pensioners will increase to $1,026.50 and of course, for couples, it will be $1,547.60 for a couple pensioner. This is an important step to attack the cost-of-living pressures and support those on pensions and social security payments, but this is just the beginning of what we, as a government, in our short time in office, have been working towards. We took immediate action to freeze the deeming rates for two years for pensioners, as of July. This will ease the cost-of-living pressure for so many pensioners. We have a bill in front of the Senate ensuring 50,000 more older Australians will get the benefit from the Commonwealth seniors health care card.
Of course, at the Jobs and Skills Summit last week, the Prime Minister announced an important boost to the pensioner income bank, ensuring that pensioners can earn more before they lose their pension. This has been an incredibly welcome initiative that many pensioner groups and others have welcomed.
I'm hearing interjections from those on the other side, and they've been trying to suggest that they've had some sort of idea to do this. Of course, they had nine years in which to introduce their measures —nine years where they sat on their hands and did nothing. It has taken the election of an Albanese government to bring people together at the jobs summit, to explore ways we can help pensioners boost their income and to actually turn that into action. That is so much more than the rhetoric from the other side, with no action over nine years. Pensioners are pleased that this government is in charge and taking action to help with the cost of living. (Time expired)
