Editor;
Re: Keep an eye on residency status (PM Mailbag Friday, 27 June 2014) – Work till you reach pension age then sit back and enjoy life? Not in Australia. The old age pension is below the poverty line. So why would you not think of moving overseas? Small as it is you have worked and paid tax over the years. Yours is a genuine case.
On the other side of the coin, how many farangs do you see here in Thailand living it up and receiving a Disability Support Pension? This has been slowed down by the government now as after 6 weeks away the pension is suspended.
I don’t doubt that there are hundreds of genuine recipients of DSP’s but with a population of 23+ million there are 832,000 receiving this payment. That means 1 in 27 Australians on this payment. While weeding out the bludgers, sadly there will be some collateral damage and a few genuine cases will have to be reassessed. When this mess is sorted out perhaps the pensioners will receive a rise. (I can dream.)
Bill Neal
