Pensioners Tighten Belts As Prices Rise

ABC.net.au

A seniors' group in Western Australia's goldfields says budgets are getting tighter for local pensioners after electricity price rises.

The Goldfields Aged Pensioner Welfare Association says it provided more than 600 small financial grants to local pensioners facing financial hardship last year.

The group says each year the numbers are rising.

The Government will hold a community meeting in Esperance today to discuss the impact of rising power prices in the region.

Pensioner advocate Jack Tinetti says he would like to see the meeting address rises in other fuel prices as well.

"It's not only electricity. Firewood is a shocking price and so is gas," he said.

"The majority claim for electricity and then gas runs second. The pension rises aren't keeping up with cost of living. Nowhere near [it]."
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