DISSENTING
REPORT BY COALITION SENATORS
FAMILIES, HOUSING,
COMMUNITY SERVICES AND INDIGENOUS AFFAIRS AND OTHER LEGISLATION
AMENDMENT (FURTHER 2008 BUDGET AND
OTHER MEASURES) BILL 2008
Coalition
Senators are broadly in agreement with the majority report with respect to
Schedule 3 of this bill relating to child support, but strongly disagree with
the majority report with respect to proposed changes to the Partners Service
Pension.
Schedule
3 - Child Support
Coalition
Senators note the largely mechanical nature of the amendments in this part of
the bill. We acknowledge the strong comments made from a variety of viewpoints
about the philosophical basis for the child support reforms, of which this bill
forms a part.
It
will of course be necessary for consideration to be given to the ongoing
concerns of stakeholders with respect to the implementation of these child
support reforms, on which the committee has earlier reported, but we do not
believe this bill is the vehicle for such consideration.
Schedule
2 – Partner Service Pension
Coalition
Senators are very concerned that these changes represent a cost cutting measure
which fails to acknowledge the special status of veterans' relationships.
Most
concerningly, the bill introduces a twelve month termination rule for partners
(of less than age pension age) who separate from the veteran where there is no
divorce or new marriage-like relationship for either party. The measure will
purportedly save $39.4million over 4 years. Coalition Senators believe that this
will see many separated partners lose an entitlement and be forced onto
welfare.
It
should be acknowledged that there is a high incidence of separation and divorce
in veterans' relationships, a probable reflection of the high incidence of
stress and disability resulting from some military service. The partners of
veterans are often the victims of this stress and disability, and it is
therefore appropriate that special arrangements be made to deal with their
situation. Of course, most of the affected partners will be women and the
product of these changes will be that these women, often after long periods in
a relationship caring for a veteran without the opportunity for outside
employment, will now on the breakdown of that relationship be forced to apply
for a Newstart allowance.
Coalition
Senators are partially reassured by indications given by the Department of
Veterans’ Affairs during the inquiry that members of a couple who live in
separate accommodation due to illness (including mental illness) will still be
entitled to receive the partner service pension. The inquiry heard that there
is a high incidence of conditions such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder among
veterans. Many veterans’ separations will be attributable to such disorders so
the entitlement to a pension for the separated partner will often be preserved.
Coalition
Senators however believe that distinguishing the grounds for a separation based
on medical or psychological circumstances within the marriage is a hazardous
and subjective path and may not provide for sufficient acknowledgment of
circumstances where a relationship ends but an entitlement is still deserved
given that the breakdown will often be attributable to the nature of military
service.
We
note that these changes will impact particularly heavily on the families of
veterans of the Vietnam conflict. As the
Partners of Veterans Association of Australia put it to the committee:
...it will
most certainly impact heavily on the wives of Vietnam veterans and, additionally, partners of
both our current and future serving Defence Force members. The wives and
families of our Vietnam veterans have already paid a huge price for their
veterans’ war service and they continue to suffer the consequences of that
service—to the extent that, for some, the cost became too much. No
consideration has been given to the many years of service that these
unfortunate families have endured only to be advised, in no uncertain terms,
that they will now become welfare recipients. Those in the Australian community
who have served their country in war cannot be compared to the most dangerous
civilian occupations, and nor should they ever be. This is also the case for
the families they return to.[1]
Nor are we reassured by the provisions for the
continuation of the pension due to illness separation. We note that in these
circumstances there must an intention by the parties to continue in a marriage-
like relationship, a condition that will simply not be met by many women who
would otherwise have an entitlement under the present arrangements for a
pension after separation.
Coalition Senators regard these changes as mean
spirited and a breach of faith with the veteran community which has served this
nation and whose family members deserve special consideration as a result.
Coalition Senators also doubt that a saving of
the kind projected will be achieved, given that many separated partners will
qualify for an ongoing pension under the illness separation provisions. It is
doubtful that the resultant reduction in savings to the budget is warranted
given that this measure diminishes the entitlements of those who have suffered
much in the country’s service.
Accordingly, Coalition Senators recommend
that the bill be amended by deleting Schedule 2.
Senator Gary Humphries
Senator Judith Adams
Senator Sue Boyce
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