Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Hansard source

It is a matter of public record—and I am surprised that we even have to have the conversation—that women across Australia have on average lower superannuation balances. It is a matter of public record, when it comes to disrupted working patterns, that that is something that is particularly an issue confronted and faced by women, whether it is in the context of caring for children or caring for an elderly parent. You are essentially suggesting that this is not so when the reality in the economy is that every Australian knows it is so. You ask what the evidence is. Talk to the women of Australia. They will tell you that that is a challenge they are facing. The women of Australia will tell you that they would appreciate the opportunity to be able to play catch-up on their retirement savings when the opportunity arises.

Labor argues that this catch-up provision will be utilised predominantly by high-income men, yet this analysis is based on contribution patterns of the past. What the government is doing is setting the superannuation system up for the future by making it more flexible going forward. When the law changes you can reasonably expect taxpayers' behaviour to change, and that is what we fully expect to occur as a result of this measure. And, based on Treasury figures, approximately 230 Australians will benefit from this change in 2019-20. Based on everything that we know about the current status of superannuation savings in Australia, our expectation is that this will significantly improve flexibility and fairness of the system for women