Lindsay Tanner (Melbourne, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

The ComSuper Bill 2010 is one of a package of bills to implement reforms that will establish governance arrangements for Commonwealth superannuation schemes that are effective and consistent with those in the broader superannuation industry. The package of bills also modernises Australian government superannuation without changing the entitlements of members of the schemes.

This bill will establish ComSuper and provide that it is a statutory agency for the purposes of the Public Service Act 1999 consisting of a chief executive officer, as head of the agency, and staff. The bill will also provide that ComSuper will be a prescribed agency for the purposes of the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997.

The bill will modernise the governance structure of ComSuper as a statutory agency with executive management, and clarify ComSuper’s functions.

The function of the CEO will be to provide administrative services to the Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation (CSC), which will be established as the trustee of the main Australian government civilian and military superannuation schemes from 1 July 2010 by the Governance of Australian Government Superannuation Schemes Bill 2010. The CEO will be responsible for providing administrative services to CSC in respect of the following superannuation schemes:

• the scheme established under the Superannuation Act 1922, referred to as the 1922 scheme;
• the Commonwealth Superannuation Scheme, or CSS;
• the Public Sector Superannuation Scheme, or PSS;
• the Public Sector Superannuation Accumulation Plan, or PSSAP;
• the scheme provided for under the Papua New Guinea (Staffing Assistance) Act 1973, known as the Papua New Guinea Scheme;
• the Defence Forces Retirement Benefits Scheme, or DFRB Scheme;
• the Defence Force Retirement and Death Benefits Scheme, or DFRDB Scheme; and
• the Military Superannuation and Benefits Scheme, or MSB Scheme.

The CEO will be appointed by the Minister for Finance and Deregulation, and the CEO’s remuneration will be determined by the Remuneration Tribunal.

The CEO is responsible for managing ComSuper, and will not be subject to direction by CSC in relation to his or her responsibility under the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997, the Public Service Act 1999, or any other law of the Commonwealth in relation to the management of ComSuper.

The arrangements proposed in the bill were announced in the Minister for Finance and Deregulation’s press release No. 80 of 26 November 2009.

I commend the bill to the House

Debate (on motion by Mr Coulton) adjourned.