I agree that Australia will not be able to afford to have retirement in the future. The population demographics have changed considerably since the pension and superannuation schemes were introduced.

We will have more retirees than ever before once all Baby Boomer generation has retired. Unfortunately Australian families have shrunk over the past 50 years and we no longer have enough young people to support the aging population.

Ms Henderson suggests that we return to our forebears’ practice of working as long as possible. As many in society will tell you, once you certain reach an age in Australia many employers do all they can to find an excuse to cease your employment.

If Australia wants older workers to remain in the workforce for longer there needs to a cultural change amongst executives who believe that younger is better.

Whilst you may think experience counts and will keep you in a job or help you find a position, executive thinking is that they can train a young person to fulfil a position and while I agree that young people need a chance in the workforce, you will find many employers are importing young people already trained from overseas.

The consequence of this rationale is that all the people that are young today in the workforce will find themselves on the unemployment scrap heap in the future if the there is not a huge cultural change in the way Australians think about older people working.

A classic example is George Bailey only 34-years-old and sent to the scrap heap for being too old.

HOW IS it that a commercial venue, namely Village Cinemas, can provide comfortable seating for its patrons yet our locally elected council leaders ignore the requests from us the ratepayers to improve the seating in our Princess Theatre.

I am of the opinion, if they improved the seating in our theatre, we as patrons would support the venue in greater numbers.

SURELY in a period of tightened government largesse with pension entitlements cut back, Centrelink now retrieving supposed over-payments, superannuation restrictions recently imposed, frozen Medicare benefits and doing away with school kids bonuses, we can expect our politicians to exercise more responsible behaviours.

We are sick of hearing, ‘it’s within the rules’, when the rules are so vague that nearly anything from attending mate’s weddings, enjoying sports contests and family holidays are claimed to be within those rules.

Such things are certainly outside the general public’s fairness tests. Why are politicians so special that nearly every possible expense can be charged to the public purse?

What about the rest of the population who pay their way, who also face time separate from families and who must always be conscious of costs and family budgets? We must do more than name and shame the greedy.

And now is the time to remove some benefits, such as allowing paid family travel and giving defeated-retired pollies lifetime gold cards. Why is their service so superior to that of Joe Blow who worked unstintingly for 40 years?

WHILE ministers Alan Tudge and Christian Porter hound the poorest in Australian, Sussan Ley gallivants around on taxpayers’ money. What hypocrites.

How can we find out just who is taking advantage of the rules? Politicians work for us, not us for them.