Andrew Leigh (Fenner, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

I thank you for that wise correction, Mr Deputy Speaker. The Leader of the Opposition spoke to the National Press Club last August, making clear that Labor will not tie the $500,000 lifetime cap back to 2007, but our changes would apply from budget night. That means that Australians who had invested in good faith based on clear rules would not be punished after the fact, nor would they have to go back through the laborious process of piecing together financial decisions. He also said that Labor would lower the threshold for high income superannuation contributions from $250,000 to $200,000. Those measures, at the time the Leader of the Opposition addressed the National Press Club in August last year, were costed by the Parliamentary Budget Office to improve the budget by $238 million over the forward estimates and by $4.4 billion over the decade, delivering more budget savings but no retrospectivity.

That again is an indication of Labor's strong support for sensible superannuation reforms. Labor engages with the community. We consult carefully and we do not put forward the sort of rushed and haphazard changes that the government has done, which have led to this cleaning-up bill that the House is debating today.

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