AUSTRALIA: Over 75s Still Giving Kids Pocket Money

SYDNEY (Sydney Morning Herald), November 21, 2007: A new report has turned on its head the notion of ageing parents becoming a financial burden on their children. Figures out show that, in fact, almost one in four older Australians is helping financially support their adult children or other relatives. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has released a snapshot into the social, economic and health profile of people aged over 65. The report found older Australians were "active contributors to family and community life, and not the burden on the community some people imagine them to be". Studies have shown that while support flows in both directions, "the balance within families appears to be in the direction of older generations supporting younger generations". The report analyses Australian Bureau of Statistics figures to find about 24 per cent of older Australians - about 600,000 people - were providing support for their adult children aged 25 or older, or other relatives. More than one third of those aged 55 to 64 were providing such support. The assistance declined with age, but was still quite common, at 21 per cent, among people aged 75 years and older. Help to pay bills was the most common form of direct financial support, followed by spending money, money to pay for housing costs, and for "big cost items". Six per cent of people aged 75 and older were still giving their children spending money. Parents also commonly let their children borrow their car or drove them places, and many let their children live in the family home. The institute also found 24 per cent of men and 13 per cent of women aged 65 to 69 still worked, and almost half of those aged 65 to 74 gave unpaid help to someone outside their household. And although disability levels and use of healthcare rose with age, the overwhelming majority of older people continued to live in private homes. Just six per cent lived in nursing homes or hospitals. "Even among those aged 85 years and over, the great majority - 74 per cent - live in private dwellings," the institute's ageing and aged care unit head Ann Peut said. As of June 30, 2006, 2.68 million people were aged 65 and over, representing 13 per cent of the total 20.5 million population. By 2036, people aged 65 and over are expected to make up 24 per cent of Australia's predicted 26.5 million population. About 320,000 people are aged 85 and over, and that figure is expected to rise to 1.1 million by 2036. © 2007 AAP