Libby Coker (Corangamite, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Earnings corresponding to balances below $3 million will continue to be taxed at 15 per cent in the accumulation phase, and earnings will remain tax free in the retirement phase. This is commonsense reform. The concession rate applying to future earnings on balances above $10 million will be 40 per cent, and both the $3 million and $10 million thresholds will be indexed.

These reforms maintain the concessional treatment of super but ensure it is provided in a more equitable and sustainable way. Our superannuation system provides concessional tax treatment because super has a clear objective: to provide income for a secure retirement. This government legislated that objective. Concessional tax treatment is justified because it encourages long-term savings for retirement. Importantly, these changes ensure that tax concessions are better targeted and more sustainable.

Labor built Australia's superannuation system, and under this government we are strengthening it in significant and practical ways. We have legislated the objective of super: to provide income for a secure retirement. We have increased the superannuation guarantee to 12 per cent, the culmination of decades of effort. We are paying super on government funded paid parental leave, helping to close the gender gap on retirement savings. We've legislated payday superannuation so that, from July this year, workers will receive their super at the same time they receive their wages—not once a quarter, not when it suits the employer, but every payday. For a 25-year-old on an average wage, that could mean around $6,000 more at retirement.

We have expanded the coverage of the superannuation performance test from around 80 products to more than 800, driving accountability and better outcomes for members. We've announced mandatory service standards and are reforming the retirement phase to ensure Australians are supported as they transition from work to retirement. And today we introduce legislation to increase LISTO and better target super tax concessions. This is a coherent reform agenda. It is a reform agenda that's about fairness. It's about sustainability and it's about confidence in superannuation.

Millions of Australians are approaching retirement over the coming decade. For them, the decision they make at this time is significant and can sometimes be daunting. This bill will help strengthen their confidence in super, knowing it can and will deliver for them. It ensures that low-income workers are not disadvantaged by the tax system. It ensures that concessions are proportionate and responsible. And it does so while maintaining the core concessional framework that has made Australia's super system.

Voting against this bill would be a vote against a fairer super system, and it would be a vote for larger tax breaks for those who already have millions in their super accounts. This is not the choice this government is prepared to make. We believe in a superannuation system that reflects Australian values—a system that rewards work, a system that supports families, a system that provides dignity in retirement and a system that is strong enough and sustainable enough to endure for generations to come.

When I speak with older constituents in my electorate—people who have worked hard all their lives—I see the difference that superannuation makes. I also think about my two daughters, who are part of a generation that will contribute at 12 per cent across their entire working lives. With the right settings, they will retire with greater security than any generation before them. That only happens if we maintain the integrity of the system. That's what this bill is all about: strengthening the system, making it more sustainable and, importantly, making it fairer for all.

This bill will enable the strengthening of superannuation for those on low incomes. It ensures tax concessions are better targeted and it reinforces the legislative objective of super: to provide income for a secure retirement. Our superannuation system is a national achievement, and we should all be very proud of it. This legislation ensures it continues to deliver for millions of working Australians, today and into the future.

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