Shorten must rule out another super tax hike

01/02/12

Superannuation Minister Bill Shorten must come out today and rule out yet another Labor Party tax increase on people’s retirement savings.

He must emphatically reject the most recent push by his friends in the union movement to use the next budget to increase taxes on people’s superannuation.

He must reassure Australians that the Superannuation Roundtable he announced on Sunday afternoon is not part of a secret Labor Party agenda to increase taxes on their superannuation savings.

Labor has already dramatically increased taxes on superannuation since coming to office.

By cutting concessional super contribution caps from $50,000 and $100,000 down to $25,000, Labor has already dramatically increased taxes on people’s retirement savings through superannuation.

In the most recent MYEFO Labor has extended the tax increase further by refusing to index that low $25,000 threshold for another year.

Labor also cut the successful Howard government initiated co-contribution scheme encouraging lower income Austrlians to save for their retirement.

Instead of encouraging Australians to make additional voluntary superannuation contribution to complement their forced savings through the superannuation guarantee, Labor is making it harder for people to save.

Bill Shorten generally struggles to stand up for the public interest against the vested interest of the union movement.

That is evidenced by his refusal to implement the Cooper recommendations to improve corporate governance and transparency standards in superannuation or to ensure competition in the superannuation default fund market.

But this one should be an easy one for him. Come out today Bill. Rule out yet another Labor Party tax hike.