Bill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation) Share this | Hansard source

The member for Higgins, who has had a very bad weekend in preselections, is now interjecting. What I recall is that her former boss, the former member for Higgins and the then Treasurer, Peter Costello, acknowledged the benefits of superannuation. I touched a raw nerve there with the member for Higgins. As for who pays, it is paid for out of the creation of productive value in enterprises. The only way you could argue that it is some sort of a cost on business would be to suggest that there will never be real wage increases in the whole period going forward and that the wages in 2013 would, without superannuation, be the same remuneration received by employees in 2019, which is patently false. The question of who pays is clearly and succinctly dealt with. To paraphrase former Prime Minister Keating, 'When conservatives tell you that this is some sort of tax on employers, they are either misinformed or they are lying, and they are wrong.'

Some of the other questions raised by the member for Dunkley include the proposition that superannuation is another impost on small business. Having first established that it is not actually what it has been described as by the shadow minister for small business, I would also remind him of the measures which this government has put in the actual appropriation bill to help small businesses. Of course, that includes not least the loss carry-back provisions. I also remind him of the deduction for motor vehicles which are purchased. I remind him of the tax deduction for purchase of capital equipment. These are real measures which help small business.

Of course, in politics it does not do anyone any credit to practise political amnesia. The reason why small business did not get a tax cut is that those opposite were against it. To quote the Assistant Treasurer in the chamber, the first spokesperson for small business ever in the history—

Ms O'Dwyer interjecting—

The louder you shout, Member for Higgins, your logic does not improve. Does anyone remember a coalition small business spokesperson ever voting against a tax cut for small business? You look through the history. You look through Hansard from 1901. There is only one person who wins that prize, and that is the current member for Dunkley.

He also asked questions about contribution caps. Talk about the pot calling the kettle black! There is only one party in this parliament that believes in increasing the contribution caps. That is the Labor Party; that is the government. We believe in increasing the contribution caps for people over 50. The opposition, as on many things in terms of policy for the nation, have their policy on contribution caps in a witness protection program. We know they cannot afford to be positive and match Labor's policy of lifting it to $50,000 in 2014 for people over 50 with account balances up to half a million dollars. We know that those opposite cannot afford to be positive because they cannot afford to pay the bills. They have done no work in opposition and they do not know how they are going to fund it.

In terms of the other questions asked by the member for Dunkley, the IMR regime legislation will come forward soon, as will legislation on payday lending. We are most interested to see if those opposite will actually support reform of payday lending. In terms of the accountants' exemption, that will be resolved fairly soon after continued discussions with all the relevant bodies. In terms of the APRA-regulated funds within Trio, people who had money which has been lost through malfeasance in APRA-regulated funds have in fact been compensated. (Time expired)

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