Push to address superannuation adequacy

The Federal Government and industry bodies must come to an agreement on Australia’s superannuation adequacy levels, according to the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST).

The AIST chief executive officer Fiona Reynolds said the groups needed to get together to “work out the best and most efficient ways of achieving adequacy”.

The call came at a forum, hosted by the AIST, on the issue of superannuation adequacy.

Reynolds also said that the current compulsory level of superannuation must be lifted to 15 per cent by 2015, and that bi-partisan support from the major political parties would be needed to achieve such a measure.

Using tax cuts to boost superannuation should be one of a range of measures used to increase Australian superannuation levels, she told the forum.

The national secretary of the Australian Workers’ Union (AWU), Paul Howes, also spoke in favour of using tax cuts to boost superannuation levels.

Money Management reported on Friday that an AWU commissioned report by Roy Morgan Research found that more Australian’s would prefer the tax cuts promised in the 2007 election to be divided between decreased tax and increased superannuation.

Dr Peter Burn, associate director of public policy for the Australian Industry Group, argued that the tax cuts should not be transferred into superannuation payments.

Dr Burn argued that Australians should be able to choose what they do with their tax cuts.

“We think that the tax cuts ought to be paid in full,” he said.

The executive manager of the Industry Super Network, David Whitely, also repeated his calls from last week that the Federal Government should tie any increase in superannuation contributions to reforms to increase the efficiency and fairness of the superannuation system.

Speakers at the forum also discussed the adequacy of superannuation among low-income earners, women and the unemployed.