House debates

Tuesday, 7 March 2023

Statements by Members

Superannuation: Taxation

1:49 pm

Photo of Luke HowarthLuke Howarth (Petrie, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Defence Industry) Share this | | Hansard source

Two weeks ago, the Treasurer announced that Australians would now have their superannuation tax doubled on balances over $3 million despite the Prime Minister promising no changes to super before the May election last year. The tax rate of 15 per cent on super is the tax rate on super. It's law. It's not a concession. Labor ministers can keep trying to cover up this debacle by minimising the impact of these changes, but the Australian people aren't silly. With inflation, those impacted will rise to at least 10 per cent of the Australian population, and it's your hard-earned money in retirement that will pay the price. That's one in 10 Australians—Australians who in May 2022 were promised by Albanese that there would be no changes to super. These changes are nothing more than another broken election promise and bad policy, and I won't support bad policy.

The proposed tax on unrealised capital gains has never been a system of the Australian Taxation Office. This means Labor are coming after money you haven't even earned yet. Unrealised capital gains could be applied to other assets, like investment properties or cryptocurrency. It's like taxing your poker chips before they have even been cashed in. It has never been done before in Australia.

He has broken his word on mortgages, lower interest rates, lower electricity prices and super. This Prime Minister, Albanese, can't be trusted.