Gudgeon Bill: New Zealand Superannuation Amendment Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee 
Gudgeon Bill: New Zealand Superannuation Amendment Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee 
[Volume:625;Page:20078] 
BILL GUDGEON (NZ First) 
: 
 To be in Opposition also means to act responsibly. New Zealand First is here for the future and all facets of governing and if New Zealand First’s contribution by policy making can enhance a more positive lifestyle for all citizens we stand to be heard. New Zealand First supports the bill. 
One could say that one of the reasons New Zealand First was born was the deception dealt to elderly New Zealanders in the late 1980s and in the 1990s. We are referring of course to the superannuation surtax and the actual level of superannuation payments. In 1984 Labour’s election manifesto promised no change to superannuation but 1 year later in April 1985 Labour imposed its superannuation surtax which affected three-quarters of all superannuitants. In 1989 Labour announced that the retirement age would be put up to 65 and in 1991 National sped up that process. That was the same party whose leader at the time Mr Bolger had campaigned on a promise to scrap the surcharge—“no ifs no buts no maybes”—then National’s “mother of all Budgets” in 1991 increased the surtax. 
In April 1998 New Zealand First abolished the surtax. During that brief time in Government New Zealand First also fought off Mrs Shipley’s determined bid to slash superannuation introduced the compulsory superannuation debate provided an extra $252 million for elective surgery funded 32000 more operations provided free influenza vaccines for the elderly and budgeted for the removal of income and asset testing for elderly care. 
The whole issue comes down to whether we value our senior citizens or whether we see them as a group set apart from the rest of the community. New Zealand First’s stance towards the elderly is straightforward. The elderly are us—an integral part of us. They are the soul of the country. One crucial point needs to be borne in mind. The real impact of an ageing population has yet to set in. 
When we look at where Government policy is in relation to the elderly the omens are not good. The Government is already penny-pinching in areas that affect some of the most vulnerable elderly. In the elderly care sector right now the talk is of crisis. Over the past 6 months the closure of some 17 residential care facilities for the elderly has been announced. A few years ago the consulting firm Price Waterhouse did a major study of Government funding for elderly care and found a fundamental shortfall of funding levels of around 20 percent. That chronic underfunding is still to be addressed. However at some point in many lives independent living ceases to be a feasible option. People then need quality residential or hospital care. That is the real test of how we value the elderly. And what do we see? The infrastructure to provide care for the elderly is collapsing. 
New Zealand First however is committed to providing a better future for senior citizens. Governments cannot protect citizens from all the circumstances and vicissitudes of life. Illness accidents and misfortunes happen. But there are some things that the State can provide such as a basic income to allow people to live in dignity and comfort. With these words New Zealand First supports this bill. Hopefully we will look to take care of our elderly with more care and love. 
When we look at the people who have attended the political rallies that have been held recently we see that they are concerned and a big number of people in that area will be voting because of their maturity and their understanding of politics and because of what they have done for the nation. Many of them have not forgotten the hard times they were brought up in regarding the farms they had to break in their concerns about how they would take care of their children and their education and also their defence of our country. So we really need to take care of our people. If there is a time when we really need to do that it is now. 
I understand that the election will be held shortly. As far as New Zealand First is concerned we will be doing our very very best to cater for and take care of the needs of our elderly.