Senator FIERRAVANTI-WELLS (New South Wales—Minister for International Development and the Pacific) (14:12): I thank Senator Moore for the question. Since the coalition formed government in 2013, pensions have increased by more than $99 per fortnight for singles and by more than $149 per fortnight for couples. Pensions will continue to rise twice a year. The age pension is paid at the highest fortnightly rate of income support payments and has the most generous indexation arrangements in Australia's social security system. In 2015, the government made a decision to rebalance the age pension asset test to make the system better targeted and more sustainable. As part of this change, we also raised the asset test threshold, making it more generous to people with modest levels of assets. From 1 January 2017, around 165,000 pensioners began receiving an average $25 more per fortnight as part of the government's decision, and this included around 47,000 part-pensioners who then qualified for the full pension. Ninety per cent of pensioners are either better off or have no change to their pension under the measures. Of course, those opposite have already banked the savings of this decision at the 2016 election. So I ask those opposite— Senator Moore: Mr President, I raise a point of order, on direct relevance. I thank the senator for the background information, but I'm wondering whether we can get to the issue of the cuts in my question. The PRESIDENT: Senator Moore, I note your question included the word 'why' when you asked how the government was undertaking the policy. I note the minister has 30 seconds to continue her answer, but at the moment I find that what she's saying is directly relevant to the question as asked. Senator FIERRAVANTI-WELLS: As I was saying, those opposite conveniently forget that they banked the savings of this decision in the 2016 election. So I ask those opposite: have you changed your position? Senator Moore asked me about pensions. I would also like to touch on the pensioner concession card. The pensioner concession card was removed— (Time expired) The PRESIDENT: Senator Moore, a supplementary question.