Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Building a Stronger and Fairer Super System) Bill 2026 and the Superannuation (Building a Stronger and Fairer Super System) Imposition Bill 2026. This legislation is about strengthening what is one of Australia's most important social institutions, our superannuation system. It's about fairness, boosting retirement savings for everyday Australians, closing loopholes that benefit the very wealthy and addressing structural inequalities that have left, in particular, many women retiring with significantly less super than they should have.

This bill is a substantial piece of reform and one that reflects core Labor values—fairness, equity and opportunity. Why does this bill matter? Australia's superannuation system is rightly regarded as world leading. It ensures savings for retirement so that millions of Australians do not enter old age solely dependent on the age pension. It underpins retirement security and reduces future pressure on governments and taxpayers. But the system is not perfect, and the bill before us responds to some clear problems and imbalances that have emerged over time.

First, it recognises that the tax concessions in superannuation have been unjustly skewed towards those who are already wealthy. This reform, by introducing a fairer tax structure on very large super balances, particularly through what is known as division 296, ensures that people with exceptionally large super savings pay their fair share. It targets concessions on balances above the $3 million and $10 million thresholds, with tax rates that reflect capacity to pay. This is the basis of our taxation system.

Second, the LISTO is an automatic tax rebate paid into the super accounts of low-income earners to offset some or all of the tax paid on their super contributions, which are taxed at a flat rate of 15 per cent. Because of changes in tax brackets and increases in the superannuation guarantee, some low-income earners are now paying more tax on their super than on their take-home pay. That is plainly unfair. Schedule 4 of this bill lifts the income thresholds from $37,000 to $45,000 and increases the minimum rebate from $500 to $810. In Newcastle alone this will boost the super of more than 8,200 low-income earners, delivering around $3.2 million per year into super accounts across my electorate. Importantly, 55 per cent of these beneficiaries will be women, reflecting the reality that women are more likely to be in lower paid and part-time work and therefore more exposed to inequalities in the super system. Strengthening the LISTO is a very practical step towards closing the gender super gap.

Third, this bill forms part of a broader effort to fix structural problems in the super system, including unpaid super. I've heard some members opposite talking about super being their constituents' money, and in many respects this is true. A lot of my constituents have had their money stolen from them in the form of unpaid super. That is a problem in my electorate, and it has been for some time. We need a remedy. Almost 22,000 workers in Newcastle—that is 27 per cent of workers in my electorate—were not paid their proper superannuation entitlements in 2022-23. That's the last lot of data we have. I want those 22,000 people to have that money in their pockets when they retire. They deserve every cent of it.

We've got to fix this system so that they get their entitlements. If you were wondering what 22,000 workers missing out on super tallies up to, it's $38.8 million in unpaid super across Newcastle in just one year. That is why this bill is before this House. If you think that is just, you need to rethink your position. I would love to see members opposite supporting this bill, but it seems that's not going to be the case. I want you to think about all those workers in your electorates who are being ripped off. There are a lot of them. You can look up the data. I've given you the data for my electorate. You're going to have to explain to the thousands in your electorates why you vote against this bill.

Nationally we know there are 3.3 million Australians missing out on some $5.7 billion in their legal super entitlements in any year. That is money workers earned, and it's money for women who already, as I've noted, retire with significantly less superannuation on average. Unpaid super can compound lifelong financial inequality, and that is why we're linking up initiatives like payday super. It's so critical that that reform is in place. We're ensuring that workers receive their super as part of their pay cycle so there is no more of this waiting three months, six months or nine months to figure out if your employer has been making contributions or not. Those days have ended, thank goodness.

So who stands to benefit from this bill? Well, let me be very clear. This bill is not about penalising everyday Australians. The National Party in particular are going to want to note this. It's about strengthening outcomes for working people and ensuring that those wealthier Australians, many of whom are not living in your regions—I'm a regional seat holder. I know the income levels in my seat. I think that those people that you represent are disproportionately impacted by the current system of super, and they stand to benefit from the reforms here rather than the existing tax concessions that are disproportionately impacting people in your electorates. That is unfair for the vast majority of people that you represent.

I remain forever optimistic for hope and seeing people coming onto a unity ticket here in supporting those typically not-wealthy regional Australians that we represent in this chamber. It's those everyday workers who stand to benefit from this bill, with stronger protections in their super entitlements thanks to reforms like the payday super—a crackdown on unpaid super that costs Newcastle workers, as I've already said, $38.8 million every single year—and enhanced support for low-income workers through the expanded low-income superannuation tax offset. That's the benefit.

If you've got women in your electorate, which I'm sure you have—women and carers—they are big beneficiaries of these reforms. Women will benefit significantly. They currently retire with about 25 per cent less superannuation than men in your electorates—and that's on average, that figure—reflecting the structural realities of the labour market, including lower average wages, higher rates of part-time work and time taken out of work for us to undertake caring responsibilities. That's the burden women carry.

Measures like strengthening the low-income superannuation tax offset ensure that those low-income earners are not being penalised by that flat 15 per cent tax on super contributions, because women are more likely to fall into the low-income brackets or part-time roles. They will disproportionately benefit from this bill. It helps even up that unequal ledger that exits. Reforms such as payday super will also make a real difference for women, ensuring that super gets paid at the same time as their wages, reducing that risk of unpaid or delayed contributions. That's a problem that particularly affects workers in sectors where women are strongly represented, including retail, hospitality, health and care services. You all have them in your electorates.

Taken together, these reforms are practical steps towards narrowing the gender super gap and improving retirement security for Australian women. Most importantly, millions of Australians saving for retirement can be confident that our super system will continue to deliver on its fundamental purpose: a dignified retirement and reduced reliance on the aged-care pension.

Why does this matter for Newcastle? I've already articulated how many people are ripped off by the current scheme, and we need to do better. But I'm a very proud Novocastrian. It's a great community of workers, families, tradies, small-business owners, healthcare professionals, teachers, carers and retirees. Across Newcastle, superannuation matters deeply to these people. Many of my constituents work hard throughout their lives, contribute to our community and rightly expect that, when they retire, they will have a fair and secure nest egg.

This bill delivers for everyday Novocastrians—for those workers—by strengthening protections, ensuring fairer tax rules and making sure that employer contributions are paid properly and on time. It protects the principle that your retirement should be supported by your hard work and contributions, not reliant on an outdated system that allows special treatment for the most advantaged. For Newcastle's small and medium enterprises, reforms like payday super also offer clarity and fairness. Modernising rules that bring super payments into the rhythm of modern payroll is a change that boosts confidence and compliance.

It's worth pausing to reflect on Labor's record on the economy, on wages and on the standard of living, because this bill does not exist in isolation. It sits within a broader coherent approach to strengthening the economy and supporting working families. Labor has unequivocally been supporting wage growth. We championed increases to the minimum wage and supported wage increases that help ensure that work pays. We've stood against calls from those opposite to see stagnant wages and no real improvement in living standards. Three consecutive increases to the minimum wage mean $9,000 going into the pockets of the lowest income earning people in Australia. That's a good thing.

It was, of course, a Labor government that created superannuation. Under prime minister Paul Keating, Labor introduced compulsory superannuation, a reform that transformed retirement in this country and became one of the most significant economic and social achievements in modern Australian history. Before Labor acted, millions of Australians retired with little more than the age pension. Labor's vision was simple but profound: working Australians deserve dignity and independence in their retirement.

Since then, Labor has consistently defended and strengthened super against attacks and attempts to water it down. And you can be sure we will forever do so. We've overseen the gradual increase of the super guarantee to 12 per cent, a historic boost that means everyday workers have put more away in their super accounts than at any other time in history. Now we're acting again, cracking down on unpaid super and strengthening the LISTO to ensure low-income workers are not left behind. This bill continues that commitment, strengthening a cornerstone of our social contract—superannuation—for the long term and for all Australians.

It's also important to examine the alternative—the record from members opposite. For years, the coalition have opposed meaningful reform to superannuation that would improve fairness in the system. It seems like that's going to be the same again this time around, although I keep pleading that members opposite might reconsider. Rather than supporting workers and retirees, their instinct has been to protect tax concessions for those that are already doing very well, even at the expense of a stronger retirement system for ordinary Australians. When proposals were first mooted to address unjust super tax concessions, the opposition decried them as 'super big and super bad'. That's not because they were unfair. It's because the opposition feared that any measure that asks the wealthy to pay a fairer share would be too difficult a step. Even now, when the nation's super scheme has been modernised and protections strengthened for everyday workers, the opposition are digging in their heels rather than offering a constructive solution.

I don't give up hope, though. This is an important bill. It's an important step forward, and I really appeal to members opposite to get on board and support these reforms.

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