The new role of the new Senate was on full display last week with sensible amendments being made to Labor Government legislation.

The Medicare Levy Surcharge Bill passed but with the thresholds amended to $70,000 for single and $140,000 for couples. This means that singles earning more than $70,000 pa will either need to have private health insurance or pay an extra 1% Medicare surcharge.

Labor had wanted to raise the thresholds to $100,000 for singles and $150,000 for couples, despite the fact that Treasury evidence showed up to 750,000 people would drop out of private health insurance at this level.

The Government refused to acknowledge that this would lead to higher premiums for those who stayed in - often the elderly and chronically ill.

And the Coalition combined with the Greens and Senator Xenophon to improve Safe Work Australia, legislation established to oversee standardised national workplace health and safety laws.

Sorting out the 'crazy quilt' of State and Federal OHS laws will be very welcome to employers and employees and is supported by the Coalition. But Julia Gillard's legislation decreased union and employer representation from that on the Howard Government body and bizarrely allowed the Minister to sack the CEO of the new 'independent' Safe Work Australia at any time without reason!

This Bill has now gone back to the House of Representatives, with Minister Gillard saying she will reject the amendments.

SPECIAL DISABILITY TRUSTS

BONNIE BABES IN CANBERRA

I was delighted to join the Bonnie Babes Foundation in Canberra last week for National Babies Day.

Bonnie Babes provides counselling to mothers and families affected by miscarriage, stillbirth and premature birth. Sadly one in every four pregnancies ends in a loss from miscarriage or stillbirth, and over 17,000 babies are born prematurely.

The Foundation relies entirely on volunteers for its 24-hour helpline and, courtesy of the Labor Government, receives no funding.

Before the election the Coalition Government committed $800,000 in funding to support the Foundation. This was removed by the incoming Rudd Government, who, somewhat unsurprisingly, are currently conducting a review of maternity and grief counselling services.

Although Mr Rudd has said that Bonnie Babes was doing a "very good job", he has yet to back that support with any funding. If you'd like to support the Bonnie Babes Foundation, their website is www.bonniebabes.org.au

It's great to see that business will just go on working out ways to stay viable despite "economic security crises", Climate Change and other major problems. Queensland will host Australia's first Carbon Market Trade Fair at the Gold Coast Convention Centre from October 30-31.

It will be an opportunity for SMEs to investigate ways to make an Emissions Trading Scheme work for them, not against them. The ETS debate in many ways mimics debate about environmentally sustainable business. The trick is working out how to save money whilst saving power, fuel and water.

CARBONWASTEWATCH: In the Senate last week, the Government revealed that the draft copy of the Garnaut Report was printed on $18,000 of paper stock shipped from Italy.

It's amusing to watch Prime Minister Rudd & co trying to redefine "bipartisanship" as meaning "don't question us" in the current economic climate.

Labor tried the same trick just after the election with the word "mandate" by trying to suggest that the Liberals should simply agree with everything they proposed - without any critical analysis.

The Opposition has offered bipartisan support to the Government's moves to attempt to ward off recession - one-off bonuses for pensioners, carers and some families and increased First Home Owner Grants.

But when the Government is proposing to spend almost half the Budget surplus - $10.4 billion - the Opposition is more than entitled to ask: "What does Treasury think? What advice have you had about the effect on the next Budget? What is the long-term effect on the Australian economy and on unemployment expected to be?"

The Government also appears to have acted against Reserve Bank advice in offering unconditional guarantees on savings accounts - a guarantee that they wouldn’t be able to meet if the unthinkable happened.

Labor may have ignored Opposition Leader Turnbull's call for a bank guarantee capped at $100,000, but it's good to see the Government finally act on our sustained campaign to get some financial relief for pensioners.

I have been campaigning on this - especially the need to help single aged women pensioners - since our Senate Inquiry in March this year.

No matter which definition you choose, many pensioners are now living below the poverty line.

The latest Westpac ASFA Retirement Standard estimates that singles need $19,399 a year for a modest lifestyle while couples need $27,151. The current pension rates are $14,614 for singles and $24,414 for a couple.

Lowering the deeming rate – the set amount that pensioners and self-funded retirees are assumed to earn on all investments - would also be helpful. Most investments aren’t earning anywhere near the current rates (4% for the first $39,400 and 6% on the balance).

Thirdly, the Government needs to reverse a number of the ‘sneaky’ changes that have been brought in, particularly in the area of payments to veterans. These changes have included

• Raising the age eligibility for spouses of veterans from 50 to 60
• Changes to eligibility for separated spouses of veterans
• Changes to the income test for the Commonwealth Seniors Health Care Card that now include some superannuation elements as income, adversely affecting self-funded retirees in particular.

And last, on this less than exhaustive list, is increasing the amount that pensioners can earn (pensions fade when they earn between $69 and $778 a week for singles, and between $120 and $1301 a week for couples) before they lose not just the pension, but benefits such as the Health Care Card and associated discounts.

By all means fix the problems with the current system and make the adjustments that need to be made. Just don’t forget that real people are suffering real problems while they’re waiting for the government to get around to governing.

TIME TO RETHINK DAYLIGHT SAVING?

It's time to stop dithering about with daylight saving and just introduce it - in Southeast Queensland, at least.

I'm in favour of daylight saving. I even managed to raise three children in Melbourne during daylight saving, and not one of them faded!

But it's not the actual time that I care about - it's getting the SEQ corner into synch with the main business centres of Australia.

One medium-sized business with its national headquarters in Brisbane estimates that daylight saving costs an extra $30,000 a year. Multiply that by the thousands of similar businesses and add in the extra uncosted hours that small business owners have to put in.

A Commerce Queensland survey showed that 85% of Brisbane businesses supported the introduction of the daylight saving. Across Queensland, 69% of businesses were supportive.

Southeast Queensland businesses reported the greatest difficulty in dealing with southern organisations, with 48% of Brisbane businesses saying they had suffered because of the time difference in southern states.

Brisbane businesses were also supportive of introducing two time schedules, with daylight saving in Southeast Queensland only. Fifty-eight percent said it would not create difficulties for their business. Across Queensland, 49% of businesses expected difficulties for their business if Queensland introduced two time zones.

It's time we realised that the costs of not having daylight saving are real. They are passed on to consumers; they do make our businesses less competitive; and they do cost jobs.

SHOPSMART

Prices in the ShopSmart survey have risen again this month by almost 1%, but the independent IGA has come in cheapest for our basket of goods.

It was good to see The Sunday Mail using ShopSmart's figures last weekend.

Prices for Coles in Brisbane's Myer Centre were significantly higher than equivalent stores. Next month we will be adding another CBD store for comparison.

I’m also delighted that Torres Strait Island leaders have said all the islands will be joining the ShopSmart scheme from next month. This will include the outer islands and I welcome their co-operation.

I'd like to welcome three new CalcuKates (and CalcuKevs), our volunteer shoppers, to the team. You can check out the latest grocery figures on my ShopSmart website at www.shopsmart.sueboyce.com.au.

TORRES STRAIT ISLAND INQUIRY

After a return visit to the Torres Strait Islands in August, I called for an inquiry into the very high cost of living on the islands.

I'm pleased that the Senate Select Committee on Regional and Remote Indigenous Communities has now agreed to hold this Inquiry. It's scheduled for July next year.

I believe that there is a very real case to consider a Tasmanian-style freight subsidy for the Torres Strait. Apart from the cost of living, the people of the Torres Strait have some real concerns that other Australians don't face, such as quarantine, border security and the fragile island environmental issues.

LNP STATE CANDIDATES

Standing for elected office is never easy, and I'd like to welcome all LNP candidates who have been preselected to date to contest the next State election.

• Barron River - Ms Wendy Richardson
• Broadwater – Mr Richard Towson
• Burleigh – Mr Michael Hart
• Cairns - Mr Joel Harrop
• Coomera – Mr Michael Crandon
• Gaven – Dr Alex Douglas
• Glass House – Mr Andrew Powell
• Hervey Bay - Mr Ted Sorensen
• Kallangur – Mr Trevor Ruthenberg
• Kawana – Mr Jarrod Bleijie
• Mackay – Mr Robert Oakes
• Morayfield – Mrs Fiona Brydon
• Mudgeeraba – Mrs Ros Bates
• Mulgrave - Mr Vic Black
• Mundingburra - Mr Colin Dwyer
• Nicklin – Mr Steven Morrison
• Pumicestone – Mr Shane Moon
• Southport – Ms Tania Wright
• Thuringowa - Mr Tony Elms
• Townsville – Mr Murray Hurst
• Whitsunday– Dr Paul Joice

WHITE RIBBON DAY

As part of the White Ribbon Campaign, White Ribbon Day 25 November, the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, is a day where men can make a personal statement, by wearing a white ribbon, that they will not commit, condone or remain silent about violence against women.

In 1999, the United Nations General Assembly declared November 25 the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (IDEVAW) and the White Ribbon has become the symbol for the day. The White Ribbon Foundation of Australia aims to eliminate violence against women by promoting culture-change around the issue.

Today hundreds of thousands of white ribbons are worn by men and women across Australia. If you'd like to find out more go to www.whiteribbonday.org.au