1. And now the good news – we are getting olderand happier!
Russell Grenning
Its official:the olderwe are the happierwe are.
Latestfiguresbythe AustralianBureauof Statistics(ABS), show that,onaverage,Australiansrate
theiroverall lifesatisfactionas7.6 out of tenwhile those aged75 plushave the highestlife
satisfactionrate of 8.1 outof 10.
In fact,the goldenoldiesare significantlyhappierwiththeirlivesthanthe 15 – 24 age group which
scoredonly7.7 while those whoidentifiedasbisexual or“other”andthose witha mental health
conditionwere equallybottomof the listwithasatisfactionrate of 6.6. Women(7.7) are marginally
more contentthan men(7.6).
The findingsare includedinthe ABSGeneral Social Surveyreleasedatthe endof June.
For the firsttime,the surveycollectedinformationaboutpeople’sself-reportedmental health
conditionandtheirsexual orientation.
“Datashowed thatpeoplewho self-reported a mentalhealth condition were three times morelikely
to haveproblemsaccessing healthcare and fivetimes more likely to assesstheir health as poor(13%
compared withan overall 2.6%). They were also less likely to be employed aremore likely to have
suffered discrimination and crime,” saidDr Paul Jelfsof the ABS.
He saidthat in2014, more than half a millionpeopleor3% of the populationidentifiedasnon-
heterosexual,including268,000 whoidentifiedasgayor lesbianand255,000 who saidthey were
bisexual or“other”.
One worryingtrendidentifiedisafall inthe overall participationrate insportand recreational
activitiesfrom7.4out of tenin2010 to only7 out of 10 in 2014 while face-to-face contactwith
othershas declinedfrom79%overall in2010 to 76% lastyear.A whopping92% of people used
technologyusingphone,textorvideotostayintouch withfamilyandfriends.
ABS figuresalsoshowthatthe mediaage of Australianshasincreasedbyfouryearsoverthe past
twodecadesfrom33.4 years to 37.3 years.Inthose 20 years,the proportionof the populationaged
65 and overincreasedfrom11.% to 14.7% and thisgroup isprojectedtohave the most rapid
increase overthe nextdecade asall of the babyboomerswill be 65 or older.Inthe 12 monthsto 30
June,2014, the numberof people aged65 and overincreasedby118,700 – a 3.6% increase.
The olderand oldestage groupshave showedmarkedincreasesinthe past20 years – those aged85
and overincreasedby153% comparedto an overall populationgroupof 32% while those aged100
and oversoaredby263%. In justone year to June,2014, the numberof centenariansincreasedby
490 people (13.8%) toreach4,000 while there were almostfourtimesmore women(3,200) than
men(880) inthis age group.
Currentoverall life expectancyisnow82.1 years withboththe fallingbirthrate andthe impact of
betterhealthcare for seniorshavingamarkedeffect.The proportionof childrenagedto4 years
decreasedfrom21.6% to 18.8% of the populationin20 years.

2. We are steadilyheadingtowardsapopulationof 24million –there isone birtheveryone minute
and 45 seconds,one deatheverythree minutesand25 secondsanda net gainof one person
because of immigrationevery2minutesand12 secondsdeliveringanoverall populationgrowthof
one personeveryone minute and22 seconds.
The ABS believesthatournational populationwillvirtuallydouble to46 millionby2075 although
thisprojectedpopulationcouldhappenanytime between2058 and after2101, dependingon
variables.
HighlightsfromABSprojectionsincludePerthtakingoverBrisbane in2028 population-wise and,ten
yearsafterthat, the ACT overtakingTasmania.
Accordingto the ABS Directorof Demography,BjornJarvis,the numberof people aged65and older
isprojectedtodouble from3.2 million(14% of the population) to6.8 million(20% of the population)
by 2040 whenthe mediaage isprojectedtobe 40.5 years.
Populationtrendsare basedonassumptionsof future levelsof fertility,life expectancyand
migrationbasedonrecenttrends.
Mr Jarvissaidthe numberof people aged85 and olderwasprojectedtoalmosttriple by2040
increasingby770.000 to reach 1.2 millionmakingthatage group4% of the total population
comparedwith2% today.