Premier refuses to match Liberal commitment to pensioners

· Why won’t the Premier commit to extending the rent holiday for pensioners in public housing, as the Liberals have done?

· Is the Premier going to dig further into the pension pay-rise with water and sewerage levies after the election?

· Premier more interested in his own short term political interests than the long-term interests of pensioners

Premier David Bartlett is showing blatant disregard for the plight of some of Tasmania’s most disadvantaged citizens by refusing to rule out using a pension rise to increase Housing Tasmania rents.

I announced this week that a Hodgman Liberal Government would exempt the pension rise from public housing rent calculations for a further two years. A rent holiday, pushed for by the Liberals, expires in September next year.

The Premier, however, refuses to support this initiative or match it.

Last week, Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan said it would be unacceptable for State Premiers to use the pension increase to put up housing Tasmania rents after September next year.

I wholeheartedly agree.

The fact of the matter is that while Mr Bartlett claims Tasmania is in an economic renaissance, out in the real world, people are doing it tough, especially our pensioners.

And they face further erosion of their hard won pension rise next year, when water and sewerage charges are levied to those that live in public and private rental accommodation. The government refuses to explain how these charges will be levied, or how it will ensure that people are charged only for the water they use.

The Labor Government proposes to hit pensioners on these two fronts after the next election.

It just reinforces that Labor is more interested with its own short-term political future, than the long-term interests of struggling Tasmanians, and that its rhetoric about supporting disadvantaged Tasmanians isn’t matched by its actions.
Will Hodgman MP Leader of the State Opposition