Govt mounts superannuation clearing house push

More than a year after it established a small business superannuation clearing house within Medicare Australia, the Federal Government has initiated an advertising campaign aimed at having small employers utilise the facility.

The campaign is aimed at small businesses and involves letters attributed to both the Department of Human Services which is responsible for Medicare and the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).

The Small Business Superannuation Clearing House is available to businesses or organisations employing fewer than 20 employees and the promotional campaign launched by the Government is encouraging these employers to register their details with the Clearing House.

The mail-out of the letters promoting the clearing house comes not long after the Federal Opposition announced a policy to establish a similar facility under the auspices of the Australian Taxation Office.

The Federal Opposition has argued that small business take-up of the free clearing house facility has been poor and that it should more properly fall within the ATO.

The letters declare that the documents have been produced jointly by the Department of Human Services and the ATO, and that "no personal information has been provided to the Clearing House by the ATO".