Small pensions boost "misleading"

It's small change to part-pensioners, but the Abbott government is spruiking a $3 fortnightly boost to their payments as a sign of generosity.

Labor says it's misleading the public.

More than 770,000 part-pensioners will see the slight increase in their payments from March 20 when the government lowers social security deeming rates.

The cut means they will be on average about $80 a year better off - or $3.20 a fortnight.

Deeming rates are used to determine how much pensioners get based on their earnings from other assets and are adjusted routinely to reflect changes in the financial market.

But Social Services Minister Scott Morrison says it's because the government understood the pressure faced by pensioners with the rising costs of living.

"It's a small increase, but it's an important increase," he told ABC radio on Monday.

Labor accused Mr Morrison of misleading the public with political spin, because the deeming rate change was a standard procedure of government.

"For Scott Morrison to claim he's the pensioners' friend is outrageous," shadow treasurer Chris Bowen said.

Seniors advocacy body COTA Australia said contrary to claims, it was not a pension increase.

The group is also concerned about longer-term government policies set to decrease the value of the pension over time.

A budget measure languishing in parliament will cut the rate of pension increase from 2017 by targeting the payment it to CPI rather than male weekly earnings - a move that Labor claims will leave pensioners as much as $80 a week worse off within a decade.

"This will result in a serious loss of pension income over time," COTA chief Ian Yates said.

Mr Morrison said the proposal was still being worked out and welcomed input from crossbench senators whose votes are needed to pass the measure.

The deeming rate boost will come on top of scheduled increases in the pension on March 20 and September 20 - a biannual measure to help with cost of living increases.