In fairness to the Member for Charlton, the government hasn't had much to joke about, nor reason to smile, in recent times.

But at the Seniors Forum at Morisset on Thursday, Mr Combet had the room laughing out loud.

A crowd of about 240 was gathered at Morisset Country Club and Mr Combet was taking questions from the floor.

He was dealing with each question in his typically thorough, reasoned and respectful way.

Then an elderly man stood to explain how his two sons - both seniors and both highly skilled and experienced - now found it impossible to get work.

"What could the government do?" the man asked.

Mr Combet paused.

"Well, I've just turned 55, so it's something I think about now myself," he said, prompting a few polite giggles.

Mr Combet then smiled as he realised everyone in the room probably took it to mean he was thinking about a possible new career after the looming federal election.

"It's something I think about quite a lot lately," he said in jest, prompting full blown laughter.

■ The next Seniors Forum will be held at Toronto Workers Club on Thursday, July 18. Phone Mr Combet's office on 4954 2611.

Help for seniors explained

SENIORS Forums are held monthly across the Charlton electorate.

They feature stalls hosted by a range of service providers for seniors and experts in fields such as aged-care, health, law, financial planning and Centrelink.

MP Greg Combet said his office often fielded questions about government and non-government services and programs for seniors.

"I started hosting these Seniors expos last year in response to this demand and they have proved very popular."

Mr Combet told the forum how government initiatives such as the National Broadband Network (NBN) would assist them. 

He said the NBN would allow a medical specialist in Sydney to communicate with and even diagnose, a patient at home in Lake Macquarie, using images and data transmitted through the fibre-optic system.