It’s a slippery slope, Independent Senator Anthony Vieira said yesterday in relation to the Prime Minister’s Pension (Amendment) Bill 2025.

“Simply put today it is Mr (Stuart) Young, tomorrow, it could be any other office holder,” he said as he contributed to the debate on the bill which would deny former prime minister Stuart Young the prime ministerial pension on the basis that his tenure was too short.

Vieira, who indicated that he did not support the measure and abstained from voting, said: “Whether the former prime minister gets $8,000 or $80,000 is irrelevant. This is about constitutional rights and the Constitution protects rights regardless of popularity. Courts have warned against a referendum on rights mentality where benefits already earned become hostage to the next election cycle. A pension vested under law is not a privilege subject to public opinion or to party manifestos. When claw-back is driven by campaign promises and majority sentiment, the retrospective provision (of this bill which seems earmarked for one person, Young only) becomes a political act, not a constitutionally valid one. And that’s a very serious issue,” Vieira stated.