Pat Conaghan (Cowper, National Party, Shadow Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on this motion, which claims that only the Labor government will protect Australian super. Well, if that's how Labor want to be judged, they should hang their heads in shame, because the facts are clear: Labor is not protecting your super.

On this government's watch, more than 12,000 Australians—many nearing retirement—are facing over a billion dollars in losses from their super following the collapse of First Guardian and Shield. This is the biggest failure in Australian history. It happened under Labor, and they've been asleep at the wheel since. That's not what protecting your superannuation looks like.

I've met some of these people. These aren't rich people. These aren't wealthy people. I've met a detective from Queensland. I've met members of the Save Our Super group like Melinda Kee; Peter Spencer-Franks, a bus driver; Brad Waterman; Denise Cocquyt, a teacher; and Mike Poland, who I met last week in Perth. They've lost everything. On a personal note to them: thank you for coming to see me to tell me your story. More so, thank you for stepping up despite what you're facing, despite you working all your life and now having no super because of a failure by government and a failure by ASIC, which I'll get to. You stand up, and you will be the face, and you will fight and advocate on behalf of those 12,000 other Australians. Thank you.

These are Australians who played by the rules. They trusted that the system would protect them, but it failed and they tell me they've been left with nothing. The government ignores them. Their letters go unanswered, or they're answered by bureaucratic nonsense. They just want the government to acknowledge that they exist—that's all—and to work with them. People caught up in these failures have been pushed to the brink, and there is a real human cost. Very, very sadly, one person has taken his own life over this.

I want to say this to those impacted. I will work with you. Please take one day at a time. Lean on your family and friends and the Save Our Super group for support. If you need help, please go and get it. There is nothing wrong with that. There will be brighter days ahead. I acknowledge what you've gone through. I'm listening and I'm working with the minister to try and find a solution.

I truly hope I can work with the government. I've mentioned that the minister, Minister Mulino, is working well with me. He's very engaging and—credit where credit is due—he's doing the best he possibly can under a very difficult set of circumstances. But let's be clear. This government have failed. First, in 2022 they commissioned a review by the Treasury into regulation of the managed investment schemes, the very structures used by First Guardian and Shield. Submissions to the review called for tighter regulation, stronger oversight and greater transparency. The response by this government—nothing. The review was buried, with no reforms and no action.

Second, they let ASIC fail and haven't held them to account. ASIC was warned about First Guardian back in 2019 but took years to take any serious action. Later they raised concerns about Shield with Macquarie but failed to tell the other platforms about it. That silence led to super losses that could have been avoided. ASIC is now taking action, which is good to see, but the horse has bolted. It's too late. Twelve thousand people have lost their superannuation. They're acting like the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff. And what has the Treasurer done? Absolutely nothing. He hasn't even bothered to update the statement of expectations for ASIC, a basic tool every government has used to set standards for the agency—and when I say 'he hasn't' I'm talking about the Treasurer, not about Minister Mulino.

Instead of protecting your super, Labor is focused on raiding it. We saw that in the paper today, with Premier Allen, who has bankrupted a state and now is talking about raiding your superannuation to keep it afloat. The motion claims Labor will protect Australian super, but their record tells a very different story. This government has overseen the biggest superannuation failure in history, left Australians exposed by allowing ASIC's enforcement shortcomings to go unchecked and looked for ways to raid your super themselves. Australians deserve better.

See this speech in context