Is the Govt turning superannuation into Afterpay?

Make no mistake, Outsider is a big fan of superannuation possibly because he was reporting on it when the Hawke/Keating Government cemented the Prices and Incomes Accord which ultimately gave rise to award superannuation and then the superannuation guarantee (SG).

You see, Outsider remembers what it was like before the SG came along and before Australia had accumulated more than $3 trillion in superannuation savings and, by definition, he is of an age that makes him closer than most to being able to access the modest superannuation balance that he has been able to accumulate.

So, Outsider admits to falling into the camp of those who believe that the Government’s COVID-19 hardship superannuation early access regime actually amounted to outsourcing income support payments away from the Federal Budget and onto people’s superannuation balances – think Afterpay.

It follows that he is also of the view that allowing victims of domestic violence to access up to $10,000 from their superannuation to sustain themselves is also problematic for much the same reason albeit that it may at the time represent the lesser of two evils.

And he worries that the most enthusiastic supporters of these early access regimes are not those upon whom the burden falls. Oh no, by and large, the supporters are Parliamentarians who are receiving handsome salaries which include 15.4% superannuation and who know that lucrative consultancies seem to await those who retire from the Parliament or are forcibly retired by their electorates.

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So, while Outsider doesn’t want to see anyone left on the bones of their bum because of financial hardship or domestic violence, he is not supportive of them avoiding penury by being required to diminish their future retirement incomes.

Wherever you stand in the debate, Outsider believes Governments should generally be discouraged from spending your money by stealth.