From: jack stoner [astoner@senet.com.au]
Sent: Sunday, 4 August 2002 3:07 PM
To: fpa.sen@aph.gov.au
Subject: MP.s Life Gold Pass

The Secretary
Senate Finance and Public Administration Legislation Committee
Parliament House
CABERRA

Dear Sir/ Madam

I wish to make a submission regarding the provisions of the Members of
Parliament ( Life Gold Pass) Bill 2002 which was referred by Parliament
for your  consideration.

In my view, there is absolutely no justification for Members of
Parliament to become entitled to a Life Gold Pass, either when in office
or when retired. Members of Parliament in general already have very
generous travel concessions which allow them, to travel domestically and
around the world on quite spurious grounds,accompanied in some cases by
spouses and other administrative staff, and to suggest that this dubious
distinction be extended to a "Life Gold Pass" merely because they sat in
Parliament for some undefined period, is not only an  absolute waste of
taxpayers money  but cannot possibly be justified

Particularly when evaluated with the public sector, who could not
possibly justify or afford the same largesse to their own employees ;
the public must ask, on what grounds should the taxpayer treat the
Members of Parliament any differently, and the answer is obviouly there
are no extenuating circumstances to warrant such an extreme concession.

I realise that some persons regard comparisons as odious, but they form
a good benchmark to general standards throughout the world, and I know
of no other Goverment or Parliamentary system that would even put a vote
to their chamber advocating such a discriminatory concession, but I
would guess that the Bill obviously was intitiated by some person within
Parliament as a self seeking and quite unacceptable proposal.

In conclusion, although outside the remit of your committee, the whole
of Parliamentary concessional travel at Federal and State level should
be urgently reviewed and retricted to a legitimate  and viable level
which would help to finance more genuine and acceptable causes, and
there are certainly enough of those in need, without wasting money on
the extravagences of Parliament .

Yours Sincerely

Mr A.Stoner

4 Trevor Street
Christies Beach
SA 5165.

Ph : 8384 2438

.