Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for the question, because I did no such thing, Mr Speaker. I did no such thing. You might want to listen carefully. What the government did last night on superannuation is that we did not change the taxation status of superannuation funds in the retirement phase. We did not change it; they remain tax-free. If you have money in a retirement phase account, you do not pay any tax on the earnings in that account. There is only one side of politics that is doing that, and that is those opposite.

Those opposite will change the rules if they are elected; if you have money in a retirement phase account, you will pay tax on the earnings. That is what their policy is. We did not do that policy, because it is not a good policy and it does not accord with the principles that we follow on this side of the House. Last night we ensured that the generous tax concessions for those on very high incomes and very high levels of assets those concessions have been taken away for those at that level—$6 billion will be raised over four years from just the top four per cent of those in those categories. We have taken $3 billion of that and we have invested back into this superannuation system and we have invested it back in ways to ensure that, if you work up to the age of 75, you can still make contributions to your superannuation. Particularly for those who are largely self-employed, we have removed all the restrictions on them being able to make tax deductions for the contributions they make to their superannuation. That is really important news for tradies.

We have also lifted the threshold for people in couples so that the primary income earner now will have greater opportunity to invest in the superannuation accounts of the secondary income earner. We have re-established the support for those on low incomes through the Low Income Superannuation Tax Offset, which will make 25 per cent of those low income earners with accounts better off.

So with superannuation we have not gone after a tax grab like those opposite. All that those opposite see when they see an Australian working or saving or investing is an opportunity to tax them. On this side of the House, we see an opportunity to encourage them. Through last night's budget we want to encourage people, particularly those in small business, to go out and employ young people. There are 120,000 placements for young people to get into real jobs with real employers, based on real experience.

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