CANBERRA, ACT, Aug. 18 -- The Treasurer of Australia issued the following transcript:
Note
Subjects: superannuation, retirement incomes, rents, housing policy
Natalie Barr:
Your savings are at the centre of a political showdown with superannuation emerging as the new battleground between the federal government and both the Coalition and One Nation. Pauline Hanson wants Aussies to be able to access their super funds early, but the government says that proposal would decimate economic security and leave millions of Aussie workers worse off. Treasurer Jim Chalmers joins us live from Canberra. Thanks for being with us this morning.
Jim Chalmers:
Thanks, Nat.
Barr:
So, the Coalition and One Nation, calling for flexibility when it comes to accessing super. What do you say to that?
Chalmers:
Well, that's a very kind way of describing what they're on about here, Nat. The Liberals, the Nationals and One Nation in the course of the last week have made it abundantly clear that they no longer support universal super. So, they pose the biggest threat to superannuation in the 40years or so that we've had compulsory superannuation. And this is a really important part of our economic security and retirement incomes for Australian workers. And they would end that universal super as we know it. So, in lots of ways, the next election will be a referendum on the future of superannuation, whether or not Australian workers can continue to rely on the economic security that comes from the superannuation system, which is the envy of the world, but under attack from all 3 of those parties.
Barr:
Yeah, well, they've haven't developed policies yet. I think they're just talking about it. What would happen if everyone was granted more flexible access to dip into their super to help with cost of living? We know you can do it in an emergency, but what about if you just wanted help on your mortgage or to buy a home, for instance?
Chalmers:
Well, that would absolutely decimate the retirement incomes of millions of Australian workers. You know, one of the most important features of our superannuation system is this idea of preservation, this idea that with compounding investments over time, Australian workers can access the decent retirement incomes that they need and deserve after a lifetime of work. And the Liberals, the Nationals and One Nation have all made it clear that they don't support that idea of universal superannuation with preservation at the most important core of that system. And so that can only really mean one thing. This is another attack on workers, on their incomes and on this occasion, their incomes in retirement. And that's why they pose such a dangerous risk to the working people of this country. They all talk a big game about supporting workers, but whether it's wages or retirement incomes, time and time again they come after workers and their living standards.
Barr:
Well, some workers are saying it's our money and they want it.
Chalmers:
And they get it in retirement -
Barr:
But they want it now.
Chalmers:
- in a way that delivers the decent retirement incomes that Australian workers need and deserve after a lifetime of work. This is a really important difference now between Labor, who will always back workers, wages and super and Liberals, One Nation and the Nationals, who will always attack those things. And so this is a really important difference as we get towards the next election. People need to understand this will be a referendum on super, whether or not Australian workers can continue to access the decent retirement incomes that come from universal superannuation with preservation at its core.
Barr:
Okay, moving on. We're being warned this morning, rental prices across the country are set to rise by 30percent. That's over the next 2years. Now, this is coming from NAB, the bank. They say that's what it'll take for new investors to stay afloat. That's a lot more than Treasury's prediction of an extra $2 per week. What do you say to that? I know we've talked before and you've said that $2 a week was just what your budget measures were going to cost. And the rest is inflation and other factors. It's a lot more, though, isn't it?
Chalmers:
Well, a couple of points about that story in The Australian today. First of all, that's not a forecast from the National Australia Bank. It's not a forecast of what they expect to see will happen with rents over the next little while. And it doesn't take into consideration a whole range of factors, whether it's the grandfathering and the design of our policy, whether it's developments in the housing market or in the economy more broadly. In fact, the NAB note itself recognises and acknowledges that it doesn't take a lot of those things into consideration. And so it's not a forecast for what they expect to see happen with rents. It leaves out a whole range of important considerations.
Now, you're right to point out that the Treasury expectation is for a much more modest impact on rents. And that's before we get to all of our other policies, which are about building more homes in our economy, incentivising new builds with these tax reforms as well. And that's because we recognise 2 things. First of all, our policy is about turning more renters into more homeowners. And secondly, the best way to put downward pressure on rents over time is to build more homes. And that's the primary focus of our policy.
Barr:
Ok. The rents are still going up. Have you got any estimate now, given what you know now since the budget, of what rents are going to go up by?
Chalmers:
Well, we haven't changed the expectations that we printed in the budget, and that's for a very simple reason, Nat. The best way to assess the impacts of our reforms, which are all about making it easier for first home buyers to get into the market and build more homes by incentivising, changing the tax arrangements for new builds, the best way to assess the impact of those policies is over the next couple of years, not over the first couple of months, and certainly not just by over relying on a story in The Australian about a rule of thumb from one institution which doesn't take into consideration a whole range of factors as I've said.
Barr:
Treasurer, thanks for your time.
Chalmers:
Thanks, Nat.
Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.
