Calculating new pension rates - step 2

Today's release by the ABS of the pensioner and beneficiary living cost index (PBLCI) for the June quarter allows for part 2 of the 3 part pension rate indexation process to be completed (Part 1 was covered in this earlier post).

The index number for the quarter was 117.4 and the previous highest June or December quarter figure was 116.7.  As with the earlier CPI result, after the required level of rounding, this is an increase over the period of 0.6%, so the CPI and PBLCI adjustments both produce the same result.  That certainly makes updating the table I started in the last post easy!

This is how the rates stand so far...

Payment	Current rate	CPI rate	PBLCI rate	MTAWE rate	Final rate	change
partnered pension	$ 524.10	$ 527.20	$527.20	?	?	?
single pension	$ 695.30	$ 699.40	$699.40	?	?	?
PPS	$ 627.50	$ 631.30	n/a	?	?	?
single NSA (lower)	$ 489.70	$ 492.60	n/a	n/a	$ 492.60	$ 2.90
single NSA (higher)	$ 529.80	$ 533.00	n/a	n/a	$ 533.00	$ 3.20
partnered NSA	$ 442.00	$ 444.70	n/a	n/a	$ 444.70	$ 2.70

Now we have to wait until 16 August for the last piece of the puzzle - the release of the Average Weekly Earnings figures.  Given the low CPI/PBLICI results, I suspect it's fairly safe to assume that it will be the benchmarking of pension rates against the MTAWE figure that will drive the pension increase this time round.

Interestingly, if wages have grown enough it looks like either this time round, or maybe next time (March 2013) the base partnered rate of pension (as shown above) will exceed the higher single rate of Newstart allowance, not just the lower one (which it passed quite a while back).