Jason Falinski (Mackellar, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

It's about time! They need to be called to order! The point is this: it was the design of the system. And retail super is just as guilty of this as any of the superannuation systems.

And it's not just me saying this. It's not just me or the member for Goldstein or Senator Paterson or Senator Bragg saying this. When they know no-one's watching, many members on the other side say that the super guarantee makes people worse off. The Governor of the Reserve Bank says it. The Council of Financial Regulators says it. The head of ACOSS says it. I did not believe that I would ever be standing here quoting ACOSS, but ACOSS says increasing the super guarantee makes the least paid in our society worse off. And the Grattan Institute says it. Even the Labor funded, Labor backed, oft-quoted Grattan Institute is telling them that an increase in the super guarantee makes those least paid amongst us worse off. Even Martin Fahy said it. When the Callaghan report was released, Martin Fahy, the head of ASFA, said that it makes the arguments around increasing the super guarantee more difficult to make.

Basically, anyone with a calculator knows that our super system makes workers worse off. If the objective of the superannuation system is financial security in retirement then the Callaghan report makes it clear that owning or substantially owning the house in which you live is the best, fastest, most secure path to financial security in retirement. And why wouldn't it be? We've created a system that is gobbling up $30 billion in fees and charges. And, frankly, the Hayne royal commission should hang its head in shame for not investigating that.

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