Many in retirement are travelling comfortably, with three key factors contributing to their happiness – good physical and mental health and enough money to enjoy life.
Perhaps the assumption that markets are still anchored by predictable economic policies needs to be challenged. For the first time since the fall of the Berlin Wall, political volatility – once background noise – is potentially reshaping investment risk at a structural level.
Political parties’ election platforms ‘ignore’ retirees
With one in three voters over the age of 60, older Australians will play a critical role in deciding which party forms government on Saturday. Their voice and vote matters.
Not only does this population represent a powerful cohort at the ballot box, but it has also created the opportunities and prosperity many enjoy today. This population will continue to contribute to the economy, primarily through spending but also via the transfer of wealth to future generations. According a 2024 study by an Australian wealth management firm, JB Were, an estimated $5.4 trillion of inherited assets may be transferred to younger generations by 2050.
Despite this, and, disappointingly, political strategists have seen fit to ignore the older population as evidenced by a lack of fiscally responsible and appropriate spending promises related to the needs and contributions of older Australians, including the age pension, retirement income, downsizing and mature age employment.
Where is the leadership, guidance, support, and, most importantly, the respect for the plight of older Australians?
Policy platforms in this election campaign have overwhelmingly ignored one third of Australians heading to the polls. This will not only come at the expense of the parties; it will come at the expense of the entire community.
Remember, older people were once young, and younger people will one day be old.
Our leaders’ vision for Australia’s future does not include people over the age of 60 – an interesting and alarming notion given over the next 40 years the number of Australians aged 65 and older will more than double and the number aged 85 and older and will more than triple.
The 2023 Intergenerational Report announced by Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers provides a big picture view of the forces that will shape our economy and fiscal position over the next 40 years. It highlights the ageing population, rising demand for care and support services and technical and digital transformation as three of the top five forces affecting the economy and, therefore, our standard of living in the coming decades.
By the government’s own admission, “Australia’s success will come down to how we manage and maximise these big shifts that are underway. The decisions that we make in this defining decade will go a long way to ensuring our country has its best years ahead of it.”
Like younger Australians, many older Australians face cost-of-living challenges but, unlike generations before them, these are compounded by low fixed incomes, insecure housing, penalties for working, uncertain financial markets and expectations to financially support younger generations.
The 2025 election provided an opportunity to refine the direction of government policy to better acknowledge and give a helping hand to all those who need support.
National Seniors Australia’s six key policy recommendations, across three policy areas, reflect the diverse needs of older Australians to ensure they have certainty and choice in their later years. They are:
• Retain the deeming rate freeze until a fairer method is devised.
• Let pensioners work by exempting employment income from the pension income test.
• Review the private health system to reduce premiums and out-of-pocket costs.
• Provide more home-care packages to reduce wait list to three months.
• Create an Australia Post bank for regional and rural Australia.
• Protect your hard-earned super by retaining choice and control.
This election is the time for our leaders to share a vision for Australia’s future that includes, acknowledges and supports older Australians who made our country what it is today – so they have the confidence to live full lives and enhance their ongoing contribution to the social fabric and economic prosperity of our country.
