Publications > Press Articles 2002

Maintain public expenditure on retirement incomes - don't cut superannuation taxes

Sunshine Coast Seniors Newspaper, August 2002, p12

Pensions, private savings, plus health and pharmaceutical benefits are all vital in ensuring an adequate retirement income and quality of life. They should not be sacrificed to pay for superannuation tax cuts, the Council on the Ageing (COTA) Australia has told a Senate Inquiry into Superannuation.

Such tradeoffs have already started with recent Budget plans to cut pharmaceutical benefits and disability benefits, Denys Correll, the national Executive Director of COTA, told the Inquiry.

"If taxes from superannuation drop, the revenue has to be made up somewhere and pharmaceuticals and disability pensions could be just the start."

Denys Correll welcomed the Committee's wide terms of reference, which enable it to look into 'Standards of living in retirement and factors contributing to it', and not just superannuation. COTA has previously called for such a wide-ranging inquiry and has made a detailed submission on many policies and programs covering security in retirement.

"Superannuation is only one part of retirement income. Pensions, private savings and non-cash benefits like the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, universal health coverage, Seniors Health Cards and transport concessions all go towards maintaining the quality and cost of living in retirement," Denys Correll said.

"COTA does not want to see public expenditure which assists low income earners further cut just to tidy up the superannuation scheme or to push the savings burden more onto individuals and away from government. Low income retirees are already doing it hard with incomes not meeting living costs. They don't have and never will have the savings or the superannuation, and rely on government pensions and benefits which should not be cut."

COTA's recommendations for retirement incomes planning cover a pension bonus scheme, limiting further eligibility for the Seniors Health Card, encouraging people to stay at work longer, mature age employment opportunities, and improvements to current superannuation operations.

COTA has also warned the Committee against accepting the misleading interpretation of the costs of ageing made in the Treasury's Intergenerational Report, published as part of the Budget Papers. "The Treasurer is seeking to frighten the public into accepting the need to sacrifice such programs as pharmaceutical benefits and universal health insurance, with the Intergenerational report. He has even fooled Malcolm Turnbull into thinking Australia cannot afford its ageing population," said Mr Correll.

The full submission is at www.aph.gov.au/Senate/committee/superannuation_ctte/living_standards/Submissions/sublist.htm