"Well darling, we'll have to cut down on meat."
Last night pensioner Alan Thorley had to explain to his wife why they would be forced to buy less meat after the state government announced increases in the cost of electricity and water in yesterday's state budget.
Mr Thorley, 70, and his wife are already living on the bare essentials following increases in power and gas prices over the last year.
How emergency relief funding has increased over 12 months.
More emergency relief funding is being used to pay power bills.
A veteran who was injured while serving in Vietnam, Mr Thorley said he didn't know how he would cope with the increase in power prices.
"The price of electricity governs everything that I do," he said.
"I don't have the heating on now, we buy budget everything."
Pensioner Alan Thorley and his wife are already living on the bare essentials and didn't know how he would cope with the increase in rates.
Electricity bills are set to go up by 3.5 per cent from July 1 while water charges will increase by 6 per cent.
The power hike was less than the 5 per cent which had been predicted, however the increases will still cost the average household an extra $2.40 a week, or $124.86 a year.
Treasurer Christian Porter said he had created his second budget under a difficult climate and the rise in rates would be offset by a new $200 cost of living assistance payment from October this year.
However the payments replaces and increases the existing $147 energy subsidy provided to concession card holders, resulting in a $53 annual increase.
The rebate would apply to 348,000 households, and would increase to about $254 by 2015-16, Mr Porter said.
"The government is acutely aware of the difficulties facing many families with cost of living expenses," he said.
For Mr Thorley this means the days of being able to have a hearty steak are gone, and lamb is out of the question.
"I buy budget beef, which is bloody old stuff, at $5 or $6 a kilo and then cut it up for stir-fries or stews and that's what we live on."
"Mostly vegetables, and then a handful of meat."
Despite working for 45 to 50 years he had nothing to show for it, he said.
"In my time there was no superannuation."
"Mr Barnett has no concern for people who have worked for this state for all of their lives.
"I spent two years fighting for this country, and I get treated like a heap of crap."
His biggest fear however is for his wife, who suffers from a speech impediment, is "computer illiterate" and is reliant on him for her day-to-day needs, he says.
"I fear for her should anything happen to me; should I fall over, hurt myself or have to go into hospital.
"She can't drive and she's too scared to take the train or bus."
Heartbreakingly, Mr Thorley worries about paying for his own funeral.
"I haven't got the money to bury myself, or my wife."
Single mum Yolande Gardos said even marginal rate increases impacted her and her four children.
Yolande Gardos, with son Zeth, 4, has already used the carbon tax offset to pay her last electricity bill and does not know how she will cover future payments.
"It has really affected us," she said.
"I can't afford to turn my heater on because it costs too much."
She would only just break even with a 9 per cent carbon tax price hike still to come in July, and the state government's extra 3.5 per cent increase would send her back to square one, she said.
"Basically it took getting the carbon tax offset to pay my last electricity bill," she said.
"The payment is gone already, straight away, so it's not going to help future payments at all."
Shadow treasurer Ben Wyatt said families had been forced to adjust to rising costs over a short period of time.
"My great fear is that [this rate rise] will be the straw that breaks the camels' back," he said.
"Every week my electorate office has people calling in seeking assistance as a result of these savage increases."
Welfare agency Communicare said statistics showed 40 per cent of the agency's funds were used to pay electricity bills in 2012, up from 24 per cent of funds in 2011.
Anglicare WA said the new cost of living allowance was some recognition more needs to be done to mitigate rising costs for families but how much this would help low income families needed to be examined in detail.
Anglicare Financial Counsellors saw 100 new families every six months, a spokeswoman said.
comments so far
When will West Australians wake up tp the fact under Lord Colin"we've never had it so good" of the Cott that we've never had it so bad. Colin's big end of town mates who own all the power, infrastructure and mining are laughing all the way to the bank washing their cornflakes down each morning with Bollinger and caviar - yet the battlers, the folk on the down side of advantage, get to deal with closed Autistic schools, no heat or meat, and unable to even Bury themselves... gee, thanks Colin, you're running a fine state here! No ever yawning rich poor gap here, eh? or so you Twiggy and Gina tell yourselves.....Parasites off the common wealth of the people. Screaming while the Fed Govt tries to keep you bludgers honest getting you To Pay your fair Share.
Commenter
Stevo
Location
Mandurah
Date and time
May 18, 2012, 7:40AM
I have a Bachelor of Electrical & Electronic Engineering (hons) from UWA. I have a Masters in Business Admin from UWA. As a fully qualified Electrical Engineer I have found it impossible to get work in Western Australia. It amazes me that electricity prices are so high and yet they refuse to employ locally trained electrical engineers. Maybe if they actually employed local engineers rather than expensive poorly trained overseas ones electricity prices would be cheaper?
Commenter
Ryan Upton
Location
Perth
Date and time
May 18, 2012, 8:03AM
Why don't politicians get paid the pension only? How long would they last before they gave themselves pay rises? Not long, is my guess.
Commenter
Lindsay
Location
Joondalup
Date and time
May 18, 2012, 8:25AM
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