War widows payments set to be increased
Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, Bruce Billson, has announced that Australia’s 114,000 war widows and widowers will benefit from pension payment increases and new indexation arrangements.
These latest initiatives are in addition to the $330 million Veterans’ Affairs Disability Pension enhancement package announced by the Prime Minister at the recent RSL National Congress, bringing the total combined package to more than $470 million.
War widows and widowers currently receive a non-indexed pension component of $25 a fortnight, formerly called a domestic allowance.
This component will increase by $10 a fortnight to $35 from March 2008.
This payment will also now be indexed with reference to both the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Male Total Average Weekly Earnings (MTAWE) from March 2008.
