You may have heard that Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has reshuffled his cabinet. His new ministry was sworn in last Monday, with new ministers assigned to a number of portfolios. The ABC’s political correspondent, Brett Worthington, described the rearrangements as little more than “lightly shaking a snow globe – the pieces remained the same, just slightly rearranged”. But for older Australians, there was one potential important change – the creation of an assistant minister for ageing portfolio.
Australia is not getting any younger, so the creation of this portfolio, albeit a junior one that sits outside of cabinet, is welcome. Certainly, that’s the position of one of the most prominent advocacy organisations for older Australians, National Seniors Australia (NSA).
Chris Grice, NSA chief executive officer, said the appointment recognises the need for better representation for older Aussies. He said the many issues facing older Australians touch on multiple ministries and portfolios, well beyond simply aged care.
“It’s a timely appointment,” said Mr Grice. He pointed out that the number of Australians aged 65 and over will more than double in the next 40 years. “And the number aged 85 and over will more than triple over the next 40 years. We need to plan for this impact, and opportunity, now,” Mr Grice said.
The new assistant minister for ageing
The creation of a dedicated ministry for ageing is one thing, but who will be ‘steering the ship’? Stepping up to the plate is Kate Thwaites. Born in 1980, Ms Thwaites has served in the House of Representatives since being elected to the safe Victorian Labor seat of Jagajaga in 2019. Along with her appointment as assistant minister for ageing last week, she also became assistant minister for social security and assistant minister for women.
The challenges facing Ms Thwaites will undoubtedly be many and varied, as Mr Grice intimated. It’s hard to see otherwise when one considers that there are roughly 4.2 million Australians aged 65 and over. When expanding that age range to 50 and over, the number rises to roughly 9.5 million people. That’s more than a third of Australia’s total population.
Mr Grice said the assistant minister for ageing will need to focus not just on ensuring older Australians are looked after, but also that they’re given every opportunity to contribute.
“Representation is about ensuring the social, physical and economic contributions of all older Australians are understood and reflected in good public policy,” Mr Grice said.
Specific needs
While older Australians support the economy and society in many ways, they also have specific needs, he said. “A successful assistant mMinister for ageing will understand this diversity and be able to communicate this to their colleagues and to the wider public, ensuring better outcomes.”
Some of the specific needs include experiences of ageism, elder abuse, poverty, homelessness and cost-of-living pressures. And then there’s the growing number of cyber safety threats, potentially exacerbated by financial and digital literacy exclusion.
A wish list outlined by NSA provides some idea of the challenges Ms Thwaites will face:
- addressing the barriers facing seniors who want to go back to work
- concerns about the rising cost of living and access to dental care
- homelessness among older people
- elder abuse
- lax consumer protections for seniors in retirement villages.
That should ensure the new assistant minister for ageing won’t get bored!
What do you think about the creation of an assistant minister for ageing? What issues would you like Kate Thwaites to tackle? Let us know via the comments section below.
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