Minister Constance with NZ Consul-General Martin Welsh, and Sue and Lindsay Brockway.
Minister for Ageing Andrew Constance has today announced a massive expansion of NSW Seniors Card benefits following the signing of a reciprocal arrangement with the New Zealand Government.
The Minister was joined by New Zealand Consul-General Martin Welsh for the signing of the agreement, along with the one millionth NSW Seniors Card recipient Sue Brockway and her husband Lindsay.
"The new arrangements will enable NSW Seniors Card members access to commercial discounts offered to New Zealand SuperGold Card holders for things like accommodation, retail and entertainment," Mr Constance said.
The NSW Seniors Card program has gone from strength to strength since it was introduced by the NSW Liberals & Nationals in 1992.
"Latest figures from Tourism Australia reveal that between September 2010 and August 2011, more than one million Australians travelled to New Zealand so it is fitting the NSW program be expanded into this market," Mr Constance said.
"On average, 5,000 new members sign up each month and there are now more than 2,100 participating businesses across the State. This represents an increase of more than 14 per cent since April this year."
Mrs Brockway said applying for the Seniors Card was one of the first things she did when she retired.
''We do plan to do a little bit of travel and the fact you can use it around Australia is great. New Zealand is on our wishlist too!'' Mrs Brockway said.
The NSW Seniors Card is free and entitles members to travel concessions including all day train, bus and ferry travel for $2.50, as well as discounts and special offers provided by participating businesses.
"The aim of the program is to provide retired and semi-retired seniors with opportunities to enjoy an active and healthy lifestyle once they're no longer working full time," Mr Constance said.
The NSW Seniors Card is not means or assets-tested and is available to residents aged 60 and above who undertake 20 hours or less paid work a week.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the current NSW population over 60 years of age is more than 1.4 million. The uptake of the NSW Seniors Card is 90 percent of the eligible population.
For a number of years, there have been reciprocal arrangements with other states and territories which have entitled members to discounted travel throughout Australia.
Next month, the new NSW Seniors Card Discount Directory will be mailed to all NSW Seniors Card members. This will provide one million seniors across NSW information about the range of new discounted products and services offered by participating businesses; helping grow the NSW economy.