Cc John Perrin

Mr Scott, I have just received a copy of the report of the Senate Select

Committee on Superannuation and Financial Services, April 2001. In the

Preface (in summary) and in the Report (in detail) it states (in relation to

superannuation) "In keeping with the original intention, the CPI as a 'measure

of inflation' was expected to maintain the 'real value' of the benefits." It has

not. It then makes the unequivocal statement that according to the Australian

Bureau of Statistics the CPI is NOT a measure of the cost of living, and

because of its proven inadequacy to keep abreast with actual costs of living,

other such payments are now adjusted bi-annually through a wage-based

indexation mechanism.

This is a finding of a Senate Select Committee, which then recommends that

an indexation method other than CPI be found, and that there was strong

support for a wage-based index, such as AWOTE. The Committee

recognised that the disparity between CPI and AWOTE is the reason why

the value of Commonwealth benefits (here read TPI compensation) have

slipped so far behind.

Mr Scott, this erudite Committee investigated the fall off in benefits of public

sector and defence force superannuation, and made these conclusions and

recommendations: why is it so difficult for your office to look at a wage-

based solution to the TPI compensation payment? This payment has

suffered the same decline in real value as has superannuation, and needs a

similar redress, and effort to redress - where is the Senate Select Committee

into TPI compensation? Where is the wage-based solution to the problem?

Where are your answers? We have told you what is required, in submissions

from the TPI Federation, and your excuse is that there is not full support of

other ESOs. You then state in other correspondence that you are unaware

of the structure and membership of these ESOs but you still want their

opinion. Why? Aren't we good enough? We were good enough at one time,

when we gave up our futures for you, why not now?

The Senate Committee was kind enough to accept a submission, however

small, from me, and acknowledge it, so I would here expect that the

Department specifically charged with looking after my affairs, YOUR

Department, can at least do the same.

Geoff Olney