Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise this evening to speak in support of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Building a Stronger and Fairer Super System) Bill 2026 and the associated Superannuation (Building a Stronger and Fairer Super System) Imposition Bill 2026.

Superannuation has become a cornerstone of Australia's retirement income system and is designed to ensure that all working Australians can retire with dignity and financial security. Since its introduction, superannuation has been shaped and fortified by successive Labor governments. In recent years the Albanese Labor government has continued this legacy, strengthening the system through meaningful reforms and with a renewed focus on fairness and long-term sustainability. These bills continue that tradition, a tradition that we on this side of the chamber are very proud of—strengthening our world-class superannuation system.

The Treasury Laws Amendment (Building a Stronger and Fairer Super System) Bill 2026 will increase tax concessions for workers on low incomes by boosting the low-income superannuation tax offset. The bill will also ensure that concessions for individuals with large balances above $3 million are better targeted and more equitable. Tax concessions for very large superannuation balances are increasing in cost and becoming less sustainable. At present super tax concessions cost the budget more than $60 billion per year and will exceed the cost of the age pension in the 2040s. That's the reality of the current situation. Right now, around 38 per cent of the benefit from super tax concessions goes to the top 10 per cent of income earners and 55 per cent goes to the top 20 per cent. These concessions were intended to support Australians in retirement, not provide tax concessions for wealth accumulation or estate planning.

It's worth remembering that Australia's compulsory superannuation system was introduced by the Keating Labor government in 1992. As the former speaker said, it was after a long and hard-fought campaign by unions across the country to ensure that there was more fairness and that Australian workers could retire with dignity. Superannuation is in Labor's DNA; we believe in it. The superannuation guarantee mandated that employers contribute a percentage of an employee's earnings into a super fund, ensuring workers would accumulate savings for their retirement. This was a visionary policy, shifting the nation away from sole reliance on the age pension and towards a three-pillar retirement system: the age pension, compulsory superannuation and voluntary savings. Superannuation has since become a defining feature of Australia's economic and social landscape. It has helped millions of Australians build wealth for their retirement. It has reduced pressure on government finances and contributed to the nation's financial markets through the investment of superannuation assets.

The bill before us today will better target super concessions. It reflects practical changes to the design and implementation of the original policy, taking into account more than two years of consultation. From 1 July 2026, the concessional tax rate applied to earnings on balances between $3 million and $10 million will be 30 per cent and earnings on balances above $10 million will be taxed at a concessional rate of 40 per cent. I actually think that if you've got $10 million in your superannuation account you can afford that 40 per cent concessional tax rate. Balances below $3 million remain unchanged, which covers the majority of Australians, and will continue to be taxed at 15 per cent. Both thresholds—the $3 million and $10 million caps—will be indexed to maintain alignment with the transfer balance cap. The earnings will be calculated based on established income tax concepts and realised gains.

There has been some criticism of this policy, but the reality is that these reforms will affect less than 0.5 per cent of Australians with superannuation accounts in 2026-27, and the higher rate, for balances above $10 million, will affect less than 0.1 per cent. Those opposite may want to rail against superannuation reform because it doesn't affect them or their shrinking base. They even opposed superannuation when it was first introduced. They don't believe in it, unlike Labor, who believe that all Australians should get a fair go and have the opportunity to be able to retire with dignity, not like the generations before the nineties. I worked in the short-term money market for a company in Melbourne. As a woman, you had to work for the company for 10 years, and then you may have been invited to join their superannuation scheme. How many young women will stay in a company, before having a family or moving on, for 10 years? And then it didn't mean you were going to be invited.

Labor senators on this side of the chamber firmly believe that there needs to be fairness in the system. The Labor government have been the architects and the defenders of superannuation since 1992 and before that. Labor's policies have consistently aimed to expand coverage, increase adequacy and ensure fairness in the system. Notable milestones include the expansion of the superannuation guarantee rate over time, improvements to the protection of low-income earners and reforms to address gender and income inequities. Labor's commitment is underpinned by a belief in universal access to a secure retirement and the principle that all Australians, not just the wealthy, deserve to benefit from the nation's prosperity in their later years. This ethos has driven Labor's efforts to strengthen superannuation even when faced with political opposition or calls for deregulation.

Those on the other side wanted young people to raid their superannuation to buy a home, and their former leader suggested you needed to have rich parents and needed to get them to help you. Since coming to power in May 2022, the Albanese Labor government has taken significant steps to further strengthen Australia's superannuation system. Central to their agenda is the commitment to ensure superannuation delivers on its core purpose to provide a dignified and, as I said, secure retirement for all Australians. One of the Albanese Labor government's early and defined reforms was to move to legislate the objective of superannuation by formally recognising that superannuation is to provide income in retirement to be able to substitute or supplement the age pension.

The government has set a clear benchmark for future policy decisions. This legislative clarity is designed to protect the system from short-term political interference and ensure that future reforms are consistent with the system's core purpose. The Albanese Labor government has strongly supported the scheduled increases to the superannuation guarantee rate, which is set to reach 12 per cent by July 2025. This increase will mean higher retirement savings for millions of Australians and, in particular, those in the low- and middle-income brackets. By backing these increases, Labor is ensuring that workers are receiving a fair share of the nation's economic growth in their super accounts.

Additionally, the government has moved to close loopholes that had previously allowed some employers to avoid paying superannuation on certain wages, such as overtime for some workers. These reforms are expected to ensure more consistent and fair contributions for all employees. Our government has also focused on making superannuation fairer and more equitable. A significant incentive was the move to pay superannuation on government funded paid parental leave from 1 July 2025. This measure is especially important for women, who typically retire with less super due to carer breaks and part-time work. By recognising parental leave as a vital period that is deserving of super contributions, Labor is taking a concrete step to narrow the gender retirement gap.

The government has also announced plans to reform tax concessions for high-balance super accounts, which ensures the system remains sustainable and serves its intended purpose as a retirement-saving vehicle, not a tax shelter for the wealthy. Today, this bill again continues this tradition. In fact, let us look at the numbers this reform will create. Workers will receive up to $810 per year in additional contributions to their superannuation accounts, with the average payment increasing substantially. Over a working life, this could mean up to $15,000 more at retirement, depending on an individual's income over their career. That is a significant amount of money that will make a real difference for, particularly, low-income Australians.

In 2027-28, because of these changes, 770,000 additional Australians will be eligible for this increased payment, 490,000 people will receive a higher payment and a total of 3.1 million Australians will be eligible. I can proudly report that 60 per cent of those benefactors will in fact be women. We know the fastest-growing cohort of homeless people in this country is women. This will go some way towards ensuring that women have a better retirement nest egg and hopefully prevent them from finding themselves in those difficult circumstances. But, further, those 1.3 million Australians who will benefit directly from these changes include 750,000 women and 550,000 young people under the age of 30.

I am proud to be part of this government because we actually stick to what we believe in, and we believe all Australians deserve respect and deserve to have a secure retirement when they leave the workforce. We have also taken many steps since we have been in government to ensure that Australian women have a better life. Superannuation in Australia remains one of the world's most successful retirement savings systems, and its ongoing strength and fairness can be largely attributed to the vision and stewardship of Labor governments. The Albanese Labor government's reforms enshrining the purpose of super, supporting higher contributions, closing loopholes and promoting equity are the latest chapter in this proud legacy. These measures ensure that superannuation will continue to deliver for generations of Australians, providing financial security and, most importantly, dignity in retirement. The workers that work in retail, look after our elderly, look after our children and are on the shop floors right across this country should be treated with equity. This is going to assist them and ensure that we have a much better retirement for all Australians. It will also reduce the burden on Australian taxpayers of the age pension. I commend this bill to the House.